A New Tomorrow
by Lollipopmixcloud9
Summary: Earthland has been taken over by the Black Wizard Zeref. The Fairy Tail members are forced into hiding. After many months of running, they initiate a plan to defeat Zeref: time travel. However, only two people accomplished it. One was mostly because of luck, and the other was because of strength. The two mages are tasked of rewriting a new tale.
1. Chapter 1: Rewrite

"Over there! She ran into the forest!"

A blonde girl ran and passed by withered trees. The eerie silver moon illuminated the night sky. The sound of crunching dead leaves echoed behind the girl being followed by a troop of soldiers.

Chocolate-colored eyes looked around the surroundings, Lucy forced her exhausted legs to run. She was going to reach her destination, and she won't let anyone down. Losing many loved ones, she would make sure to alter the future from the path of destruction.

Lucy could see the brick walls, blocking her path. Not wasting any time, she took out a gold key and shouted, "Taurus!"

Immediately, a golden magic circle appeared and a humanoid cow passed through it.

"Moooo!" the spirit shouted, axe on his hand.

"Taurus! Destroy the wall in front of us!" Lucy commanded.

The spirit jumped towards the bricked wall and swung the gigantic axe, breaking the wall and allowing Lucy to pass through.

"Thank you Taurus!" Lucy shouted. "Go back to the celestial world and tell everyone that I'll make sure to get you all back."

"Yes, Lucy-san!" the spirit replied as he disappeared in a flash of golden light.

Lucy ran on the streets of magnolia. She was cornered many times by the soldiers whom Zeref sent; however, she managed to either get away or beat them, the former option being a choice. She couldn't afford to waste any more time.

The ground shook, and a large roar resounded throughout the city. A shiver ran through Lucy's spine. Lucy knew what creature was resided in Magnolia. She felt dread weighing on her shoulders, and the feeling slowed down the blonde.

Lucy felt presence in front. There were a group of soldiers hindering her way. She took out her whip, Fleuve d'étoiles, given by one of her spirits, Virgo. The soldiers seemed to notice her running towards them.

"One of the Fairy Tail members, Lucy Heartfilia!" one of the soldiers shouted. "Everyone, capture her! She's Fairy Tail's Fairy Tactician."

He seemed to be the commander of the soldiers because he was shouting orders to the other soldiers. Lucy swung her whip, the rope of weapon wrapped around one of the destroyed houses' roof. She pulled, swung herself into the roof of the buildings, and continued running. She jumped from one building to the next, using her whip when the distance was far greater for her to jump. She then landed on the stone bricked road. The soldiers, who she easily passed by, were running after her. In the distance, the familiar large cathedral stood, Kardia Cathedral, one of the famous buildings in Magnolia.

When she reached the building and passed through its doors, Lucy saw her fellow guild mate, Laxus Dreyar, standing in front of the altar, where the first master of Fairy Tail, Mavis Vermillion, stood on.

Mavis had her eyes closed. Her small figure slowly rose from the altar, feet losing physical contact with fine marble. Hands raised up towards the ceiling, Mavis muttered a chant.

Laxus turned his large figure, and his grey eyes widened as they met with Lucy's.

"Lucy!" he shouted. "Quick!"

A large magic circle appeared behind Mavis. It gleamed a yellow light. "Go through this portal," Mavis ordered, "and change the future."

Laxus jumped through the portal. Lucy was running as fast as she could, the soldiers chasing after the blonde celestial spirit wizard.

"Lucy!" Mavis shouted. "Faster! I can't hold the magic circle anymore!"

Proving her words, the magic circle slowly shrunk. Seeing the magic circle slowly shrinking, Lucy exerted more force on her exhausted legs.

Unfortunately, the ceiling of the cathedral was ripped away by a large force. Lucy looked up, seeing a large humanoid creature. Its eyes glowed red, and purple smoke came out of its mouth and ears. The creature was one of Zeref's created demons.

One of Lucy's golden keys glowed. Knowing what had to be done, Lucy took it out. She had to do it.

"I'm sorry, Loke…" Lucy whispered, tears falling from the corners of her eyes, "… thank you for everything…"

She had done this act thrice: recompense summoning. The first act was for saving her friends by sacrificing Aquarious's key. The second act was to defeat one of Zeref's demons by sacrificing Virgo's key, and the third act was to escape a confrontation with Zeref by sacrificing Capricorn's key. Now, she would have to sacrifice one more.

"Open! The gate to the Celestial Spirit King!" She shouted as Loke's key shattered.

Immediately, the great being descended from the sky. The Celestial Spirit King slashed with a downward stroke. The demon screamed in pain.

"Go, old friend! You are this world's… no our only hope!" the King bellowed as he blocked using his longsword against the demon's large claw.

Lucy was a few feet from the portal. With the last of her strength, she jumped through it before the portal closed.

Mavis kneeled on the altar. "Go children… save us from this future…"

* * *

 **A/N: Hello readers. I like to say that I do not own Fairy Tail. I am merely writing this work as a way to express my creativity and hopefully improve my writing skills. This is my very first Fairy Tail fanfiction, so the following scenarios could happen: slow updates, rewriting, hiatus, or discontinuation. Hopefully, the last two options will not happen, but no one can foretell the future. Be sure to follow, fave, and review the first chapter of my story. See you readers in the next chapter.**


	2. Chapter 2: Back Home

Lucy blinked her eyes at the sight of large wooden doors in front of her. Beside her, a salmon-haired teen was grinning.

His eyes were closed, but Lucy knew the beautiful black eyes behind those eyelids. She had seen them brightly shine—mostly from mischief—but they brought a certain charm for the salmon-haired teen. The grin plastered on the teen's face showed sharp canines, a trait shared by dragonslayers. The salmon-haired teen wore a sleeveless black vest with gold trimmings in the edges, upper body exposing bare chest and abs. He donned a black cloth, which was held by a brown leather belt, over his white knee-length trousers and a pair of black sandals.

Lucy held the overflowing emotions. She couldn't possibly mess the timeline that much after all. The worst case scenario would be losing her relationship with her best friend.

A blue cat with white angelic wings flew around in the air. "Welcome to Fairy Tail!"

Lucy smiled as she could hear the rowdy noises inside. The teen beside her kicked the doors open. "We're back!"

Greeting the trio was a white-haired girl with a tray on her hand. "Natsu, Happy, welcome back."

The white-haired girl was Mirajane Strauss, Fairy Tail's bartender. She wore a sleeveless maroon dress that reached down to her ankles. Her white hair framed her face and passed down till her chest. The smile on Mirajane's face portrayed a sense of ease and tranquility.

Not even returning the greeting, Natsu immediately kicked a guild member, causing an all-out brawl to take place. Used to the guild's newer look in the future, Lucy frowned for a moment at the guild's old look but smiled later on as she saw the scene in front of her. The brawl among guild mates, tables and chairs flying around, and the rowdy noises brought back the familiar homey feeling. She was back to the peaceful days. Despite the look, Fairy Tail would always be the same.

She was brought out of her bliss when Mirajane spoke.

"My, a new comer?" the white-haired girl said.

"Ah, yes. My name is—" Lucy was interrupted when a bottle flew and hit Mirajane's head.

Seeing the white-haired girl down on the ground caused Lucy to shift into her battle stance by reflex. Dodging a person being thrown at her, Lucy immediately grabbed the whip strapped her hip and swung it. The tail end of the whip coiled around a person's wrist. It took Lucy a few seconds to realize that she caught a raven-haired teen, who was smashed against tables and chairs.

"Huh?" the raven-haired teen, Gray Fullbuster, said as he looked at his wrist being grabbed by a whip.

"Eh?" Lucy was quite surprise. Apparently, she got the habit of grabbing her opponents from being ambushed by Zeref's soldiers. She would have to fix that problem. "Sorry about that."

"It's alright," Gray replied. "Are you a new member?"

"I want to join this guild," Lucy said as she release Gray's wrist from her whip's hold. "By the way, your clothes."

"Wha—" Gray stood up. "—where the hell are my pants!"

Lucy chuckled at the behavior. Gray was still the same.

She saw Natsu standing on one of the tables and swinging around a pair of black pants. Looking around, Lucy noticed a brunette dressed in rambunctious clothing putting down a large barrel.

"Aaah! So noisy. I can't even drink peacefully," the brunette named Cana Alberona said as she pulled out a card. "Guys, it's time… to end this…"

His fist and palm in contact with each other, Gray went to his stance, preparing to cast magic. "I've had it!"

Others involved in the brawl prepared to cast their spells. Before they could unleash their magic, a huge humanoid giant stomped his foot.

"That's enough!" it said. "Cut it out, you fools!"

Everyone stilled, the guild silenced, and the brawl stopped. The giant instilled awe and respect to everyone around.

Mirajane spoke, "My… you were here, Master?"

Natsu shouted that he won because everyone got scared until the giant stomped on him. Lucy would have sighed at the teen's reaction, but she just found herself smiling albeit it was a sorrowful one. Seeing her best friend alive and energetic in front of her reminded Lucy of the memory of Natsu's body disintegrated by Zeref's magic.

Noticing Lucy, the giant spoke, "Mu? A newcomer?"

Lucy smiled. "My name is Lucy. It's nice to meet you."

The giant slowly shrunk in size. The intimidating and towering figure was replaced by a gentle and small old man. "Nice to meet you."

He then jumped backwards. He was about to land on the railing from the second floor; however, he hit his back instead. He slowly stood on the railing and raised a stack of paper on his hand. "You've done it again fools. Look at these documents I received from the council. First…"

One by one everyone in the guild was lectured regarding his or her behavior, especially property damage and other offenses, by the old man.

"Guys… the council members are angry at me all the time… but…" the old man burned the stack of papers. "… forget about the council members."

He threw the burned papers to Natsu, knowing that the flame is a food for a fire dragonslayer.

"Listen up," Makarov said. "The power to overcome reasoning is born from reasoning. Magic is not a miracle. When the 'spirit' flows within us and the 'spirit' flow in nature connects, they will form an embodiment for the first time.

"You will need a strong mentality and a lot of concentration for that. I mean, pouring all of your soul into whatever you do is magic. If you keep worrying about the watchful eyes of the higher-ups, your magic won't improve. Do not fear the fools of the council."

Lucy could feel the tears brimming in the corner of her eyes. She remembered this moment of getting a home and family. Now, she would remember this moment as getting back her home and family after long months living and hiding in fear.

"Do whatever you think is right! That's the way of the Fairy Tail mages!" Master Makarov shouted, the guild members cheering out loud.

Lucy was finally back to Fairy Tail.

* * *

 **A/N: I had to watch and read again the work in order to stick with the plot. You readers may question yourselves if this work will be a retelling of the whole Fairy Tail plot. I will confirm that this work will mostly be a retelling of the Fairy Tail plot, but there will be some scenarios where the plot will be different. I cannot give out on how and when will the plot change because I'd be spoiling the story. A true reader would continue reading an author's work until the author himself stops writing his work. Be sure to follow, fave, and review this chapter.**


	3. Chapter 3: Gaining a Reputation I

"You want it here?" Mirajane asked.

"Yes!" answered Lucy.

Mirajane stamped the Fairy Tail insignia on Lucy's right hand. "There! Now, you are a part of Fairy Tail."

Lucy touched the Fairy Tail insignia on her right hand. She remembered the time she got caught by one of Zeref's commanders. During the interrogation, she was bound to a leather chair, and the commander, who was quite a lecherous and licentious old man, had his hands hover all over her body. Of course, she fought back, going as far as to smash her head with the commander. However, that action enraged him, and she was given severe burns. Fortunately, she was saved by Laxus and the Thunder God Tribe, but her Fairy Tail insignia wasn't. Her right hand was scarred, marring both the Fairy Tail insignia and her dignity as a Fairy Tail mage, by the commander's fire magic. She cried on Laxus's chest as the lightning dragonslayer carried her on his arms.

Lucy looked around and saw Natsu going to the job request board. She noticed a black-haired boy approach Master Makarov, who sat on the bar tables. Lucy remembered what the boy would ask.

"Is my daddy back yet?" the boy, not more than probably six years old, asked.

"You're annoying, Romeo," the master replied. "If you are the son of a mage, trust your father, be a good boy, and wait for him at home."

"He said he'd come back in 3 days…" Romeo tried not to cry, "… but it's been a week since then…

"It's not that far either! I'm worried about him!"

Master Makarov shouted back, "No way! Your dad is a mage! We have no mage here who can't take care of himself! Go home and drink your milk or something!"

Romeo stood there as he processed the words the old man said. Withholding the tears threatening to fall, Romeo jumped and punched the guild master while shouting 'idiot' before running away from the guild.

Lucy stared at the retreating figure of the little boy who she considers as a little brother. Remembering what happened to him in the future sent a pain to her heart. She remembered the tears that fell from the little boy's eyes from the future. Seeing the death of his father, especially a tragic sacrifice for the greater good of the world, had broken the kid. She wouldn't let that happen again.

"Master is like that, but he's worried about Macao, too," Mirajane said.

Thinking of following the boy, Lucy stood up and walked out of the guild.

* * *

"Why are you two here?" Lucy asked to the salmon-haired teen suffering from motion sickness, Natsu, and his cat partner, Happy.

"Natsu wants to look for Macao anyway. I go wherever Natsu goes. The two of us are partners after all," the blue cat answered as Natsu groaned out an 'aye', affirming the cat's words. "By the way Lucy, why are you here?"

Lucy sighed and smiled. "To look for Romeo's dad, Macao, of course."

"That's kind of you, although you don't look like it last time."

Lucy had her brow twitched. Was she that mean-looking during their first meeting? Before she could give her acute retort, the carriage that the trio rode on stopped, giving Natsu freedom from his suffering of motion sickness.

Remembering the freezing temperature, Lucy took out and wore a pink jacket from her backpack. This jacket was the only winter clothing she could actually scavenge from her luggage. When she returned back to Magnolia, Lucy would make sure to buy a couple of clothes.

"Lucy," Happy said, "Why are you wearing a jacket when it's summer? You weirdo."

Apparently, Lucy would always end up being called a 'weirdo'.

She answered the blue cat, "Mt. Hakobe is always cold. I prepared a jacket just in case. Also, I'm not a weirdo!"

"It stopped!" Natsu exclaimed.

He then opened the carriage doors and walked out. Harsh cold winds greeted the trio.

"I-It's c-cold," Lucy stuttered, her body shivering from the freezing temperature.

The carriage left, and the three searched through the blizzard for the mage named Macao.

"Macao! Are you here?" shouted Natsu, "Were you done in by Balkan?"

Noticing a presence from above, Lucy warned Natsu, "Natsu! Watch out from above!"

Natsu jumped backwards as a large gorilla-like creature pounced on the teen's previous position.

"It's Vulcan!" Happy exclaimed.

The Vulcan immediately jumped, passing by Natsu, who seemed to be confused by the creature's behavior.

Lucy dived from the side, dodging the Vulcan. She rolled on the snowy ground and went on kneeling position as she, with a key on her hand, faced the creature. "Gate of the Golden Bull, I open thee, Taurus!"

A magic circle appeared in front of the blonde, and from it, Taurus came out with his large two-sided axe.

"Moooo! I will protect Lucy-san's precious body!" the spirit shouted.

Ignoring her spirit's exclamation, Lucy pointed Taurus's key to the Vulcan. "Taurus, beat this gorilla!"

"With pleasure!" Taurus swung his axe, and the Vulcan was about to dodge.

However, the Vulcan wasn't fast enough. The creature was hit in the head by the blunt edge of the spirit's axe, knocking out the Vulcan.

"All right!" Natsu and Happy said.

"Mooo?" Taurus said.

The spirit had a questioning look on his face. He never knew that his summoner was this strong. From the previous summons she did, he could beat down common thugs and thieves; however, being able to defeat a creature called Vulcan should prove a difficult task to do. Where did this increase in magic power come from?

Before Taurus could even question his master, he was thanked—an action he found confusing—before his gate was forcefully closed.

Lucy could already tell that Taurus was about to ask about her increase in magic power, and forcefully closing the gate would garner his suspicion. When he goes back to the celestial spirit world, he would most likely ask the other Zodiac spirits who she had contracted with.

"Macao!" both Happy and Natsu said.

The Vulcan slowly transformed and turned into a middle-aged man. He lay on the snow, and there was a deep wound on his stomach. Knowing what to do, Lucy ordered Natsu to burn the wound for the bleeding to stop.

"Gwaaah!" Macao screamed from the pain.

Lucy restrained the older man to stop him from moving too much, so Natsu would be able to burn the wound only. Natsu stopped using his flames when he deemed that the wound was closed.

"Haa… haa.." Macao wheezed. "… shit… what a shame… haa… haa… I got… 19… of them…"

"Shut up and rest!" Natsu shouted at him.

"Ugh… I was… taken over… by the 20th one…"

"I understand. Don't speak anymore, or your wound will open," Lucy said.

"I'm angry at myself… damn it… how can I… face… Romeo?" Macao muttered.

"Just be glad that you're alive. If you were gone… think of what will happen to Romeo," Lucy said. "Besides, I think being able to defeat 19 of these creatures is a great achievement. This shows that you truly are a Fairy Tail mage."

Natsu and Lucy continued in fixing Macao's wounds. The memory of Macao's death was etched on Lucy's head. During Lucy's rescue operation, Macao wasn't able to escape one of Zeref's demons, so he promptly fought back and held them down for the other to escape. He was able to defeat at least nineteen of them, but the twentieth demon caught him off guard and promptly took his life away. Seeing the man sleeping soundlessly on the ground was a great reminder of that. Fate really loved to play with irony.

* * *

Standing beside Natsu, Lucy smiled at the beautiful moment between father and son. Both were glad of being with each other's arms. Seeing this moment, Lucy was reminded of her father. She had thought of visiting him after the Phantom Lord incident. Perhaps, she would be able to fix the relationship and gain memories of a family she had craved during her childhood. This return would be a last chance to be with her father, and Lucy would finally get a proper closure.

Walking away, Lucy heard the shouts of thanks from Romeo. Natsu returned the thanks with a wave of his hand. Lucy looked back and smiled at the boy. She was happy that the boy could still cherish his father.

* * *

 **A/N: Hello readers. I had a lot of time in my hands, so posting this chapter took less time. Unfortunately, I only have a few days left of my holidays before I return back to school, so the updates would probably slow down. In addition, I have the tendency to look back to my chapters and revise them again. I will probably post one or two chapters a month. I am also not sure if I should change the rating of this story because I had brought forth Lucy's torture—although it was mild—during her time in the future. Your opinions about this matter will be appreciated although I would prefer for it to stay in the T ratings.  
**


	4. Chapter 4: Gaining a Reputation II

"Why are you two here?" Lucy asked.

In front of her were Natsu and Happy sitting on her sofa while eating snacks.

"Mira told me that you got a new place…" Natsu replied.

"So you wanted to see it," Lucy muttered.

After getting back home from saving Macao in Mt. Hakobe, she returned to her apartment. She noticed that her magic power reserves weren't as large as it was in the future. In fact, her magic power was at the level during the Grand Magic Games. She could summon two spirits, but doing multiple summonings would garner her spirits' attention. Maybe, doing a bit of meditation after a mission would lessen the suspicions.

Now that Lucy thought about it, the First Master did explain the magic to be cast in Kardia Cathedral to the surviving members from the guild in the future. Those who passed through the portal would have their magic power held back by seals. These seals were made from the physical body of a human passing through the portal. The memories would then be passed to the person's past self. His or her magic power was also brought back to the past, but the physical body from the past wouldn't be able to contain the large magic power from the physical body of the future, so the use of seals were necessary. If there were no seals, the person's past self could probably die from the overload of magic power.

Lucy concluded that her body from the future probably turned into dust along with what she wore, especially her keys and whip. She felt great regret destroying her keys along with her body but thought that destroying her keys was the best option. The idea of her spirits being used for destruction scared Lucy.

Natsu walked towards her desk. There was neatly stacked paper on it.

"Hrmm? What's this?" Natsu said as he grabbed the stack of papers.

Immediately, Lucy grabbed the stack of papers from the salmon-haired teen. "You can't read it."

A curious expression on his face, Natsu replied, "What is it? It's making me curious."

"Just go home, Natsu."

"Don't want to. I came here to visit you."

She sighed until she remembered what was supposed to happen. She could just ask Natsu directly. Although the risk of Natsu rejecting and destroying any chances of forming Team Natsu scared Lucy, she'd like to have one of her spirits back as soon as possible.

"Say Natsu," Lucy said.

"What's up?" he asked.

"I was wondering…" Lucy started, "… do you like to form a team with me?"

"Sure! I actually have a perfect job for us already."

Lucy stared at the salmon-haired teen. Was forming a team with him that easy? She placed a palm on her face when she remembered of being tricked by him. She forgot that Natsu got the idea to form a team with her when she said something along the lines of not 'breaking promises'. Oh well, at least she willingly volunteered into being used instead of being tricked…

Somehow, the idea of volunteering to be used did not sit well with Lucy.

* * *

Lucy, Natsu, and Happy reached their client's house in Shirotsume Town. When they entered house from the backdoor by the client's request, Natsu and Lucy sat on the sofa while Happy sat on the table. Across the three mages, the client, Kaby Melon, sat on a sofa. His wife stood beside him with a tray on her hands.

Lucy could understood from the memories in the future. Last time, Natsu found out that Kaby Melon wasn't actually rich because of Natsu's enhanced senses. Lucy looked at Kaby carefully.

Kaby Melon sat on his sofa. His posture was straight, but there were signs that he was unused. His clothes were well-tailored, but he was slightly squirming as if he was uncomfortable. Rich people would dressed themselves in noble clothes every day and get used to wearing suits and dresses as time passed. Kaby Melon did not show the impression of being comfortable with noble clothes. Kaby didn't show any signs of being rich.

In the future, Lucy had been honing her observation skills. If she didn't hone it, she would probably either be captured or dead by enemy traps. Every skill was necessary to survive. The fact that Lucy was able to find signs that contradict Kaby's wealth showed that she still got her skills of deduction.

"I wouldn't have imagined a mage from the renowned Fairy Tail would accept this job…" Kaby Melon said.

"Really? I was wondering why such a good job was still available," Natsu replied.

"And you're young too." Kaby looked at Lucy. "You must be a famous mage."

"Natsu is called the Salamander," Happy said.

"Oh! I've heard of that nickname." Kaby exclaimed and then looked at Lucy. "… And this is?"

"I'm a mage from Fairy Tail. I just recently joined," Lucy said.

"I see…" Kaby said and leaned forward from his seat, "… let's talk about work."

"Alright," Natsu said.

* * *

"Lucy…" Natsu whined, "… why wouldn't you dressed in a maid outfit?"

"Aye!" Happy agreed.

The three mages from Fairy Tail were infiltrating Duke Everlue's mansion through the balcony.

Lucy sighed. "Natsu, Happy, I doubt that plan would work."

"Maybe…" Happy placed his paws on his mouth. "… you're not confident in your body?"

"Shut it, Happy! I am confident with my body. The duke has some retarded sense of beauty."

"How'd you know that?"

"I gathered information from the people living in town."

The three were walking around the halls. They reached the stairs when the ground erupted and five ugly maids came out from the hole.

"Intruders detected! Eliminate the targets."

With a single fire infused kick, Natsu immediately attacked and knocked out the maids. Lucy silently apologized. She knew the larger maid from the ones who attacked them was Virgo, one of her celestial spirits and her friend. However, the pink-haired maid was an enemy for now.

"We can't let them find us just yet. Nin nin," Natsu said as he landed on the ground, his hands copying a ninja's hand gesture.

"Natsu…" Lucy said, "… you guys are so noisy…"

She grabbed the male's arm and dragged him to the door close to them. Entering the room, the trio were surrounded by so many shelves filled with books.

"Alright… Natsu, Happy…" Lucy said, "… let's go find this book.

"Oh! I found a golden book!" Natsu shouted.

"Aye!" Happy shouted.

"You guys..." Lucy was about to scold them until she saw the title of the book that Natsu was holding.

"Daybreak!" Natsu shouted.

"We found it!" Happy cheered.

"Let's burn it then."

"That was easy."

Before Natsu could burn the book, Lucy grabbed it from his hands.

"Lucy… what are you doing?" Natsu asked.

"This book is written by Kemu Zaleon, a well-known author as well as a mage," Lucy said. "This book must be an unpublished work. I have a copy of all of his works except for this."

"Whatever, let's burn it," Natsu said.

"We can't do that!"

"You're abandoning your job."

"I like his works alright, but… I don't think we should burn it…"

"The client told us to burn it, Lucy."

"Listen," Lucy placed a hand on her hip as she pointed the book at Natsu. "The client told us to burn this book…"

"Yeah. We're supposed to do that—"

"—And then he increased the reward money. The previous reward money should bring suspicion for just stealing and burning the book, but the increase of the pay got my attention."

"You're point?"

"I'm going to find out what makes this book so special."

"This isn't our business, Lucy. The client wants us to destroy the book, so we'll destroy it."

"I doubt we'll even get the reward money anyway, Natsu," Lucy said.

Natsu had a questioning look on his face. "Why's that?"

"Don't act stupid. I know with your enhanced senses you could tell that their smell is different from the house."

"Yeah it did. You can smell them too huh?"

"I'm not some wild animal! I carefully observed him. He didn't show an impression of being rich, and the way he was squirming showed that he was uncomfortable of wearing fancy clothes."

"That's bad, Lucy. I didn't think you would stoop so low to be checking out an old married guy," Happy commented.

"I am not checking him out!" Lucy stomped her foot on the ground to express her annoyance.

"By the way, Lucy… how'd you know that Natsu has enhanced senses," Happy asked. "I didn't tell you that."

"You said that Natsu has dragonslayer magic, so wouldn't it be obvious that Natsu has abilities like a dragon?" Lucy smoothly lied. She didn't want to warrant suspicion.

"You're that smart huh?" Happy said.

"Don't treat me like an idiot!"

"I see, I see," a voice said. "Boyoyoyoyoyo…"

The ground erupted, and an old man came out. He was small and round individual wearing a black suit.

"So that's what you guys were after. I'm glad I allowed you guys to do whatever. I'm a genius. Boyoyoyoyo…" the old man known to be Duke Everlue said.

"See… all because you were slow!" Natsu complained.

Putting on a pair of gale-force reading glasses, Lucy ignored him and proceeded to read the book. She needed to know if the book was the same. For the next few minutes, she ignored Natsu and Everlue's conversation until Everlue shouted.

"Come, Vanish Brothers!" Everlue called out.

One of the shelves moved, showing a secret passage. Two fierce-looking men came out of the passage.

One of them was smaller than the other. The smaller guy had a bald haircut except he had a long pony tail that reached till his waist. He held a somewhat large pan-like weapon. The other guy was tall. He wore a sweater, and his arm was covered in tattoo.

"Natsu, I found out something," Lucy said as she closed the book.

"What is it?"

"This guy forced and threatened Kemu Zaleon into writing this book."

"I allowed him to write a book with my high and mighty self as the main character, but that idiot rejected the offer," Everlue said. "That's why I told him that if he wouldn't write it, I'd withdraw the citizenships of all his relatives."

"Withdraw their citizenships…" Happy said, "… if that happens, you can't join merchant or workmen guilds. Does he have that much authority?"

"Some parts of the land still run under feudalism. Even a guy like that can have absolute authority around here," Lucy answered.

"I don't need you meddling into where you shouldn't belong, little brat," Everlue threatened.

"Is that a threat? Just like how you threatened Zekua Melon and forced him to write the book in a solitary cell for three years! He was fighting his own pride!"

Evarlue growled. "How do you know so many details?"

"All of it was written in this book. It is a disappointing story, and I agree with that…" Lucy said, "… but Kemu Zaleon started off as a mage. He used the last of his power to cast a spell on this book."

"What! Could he have—" Everlue was panicking. "—Vanish Brothers. Retrieve the book from the girl!"

"Sigh selfish clients tire me out," the shorter of the two from the Vanish Brothers said.

"For real," his companion agreed.

"It's become troublesome," Natsu muttered.

Lucy took out one of her keys. "Gate of the Crab, I open thee, Cancer!"

Cancer came out of the golden magic circle. Holding a pair of scissors for each hand, Cancer stood beside Lucy. He had crab legs behind his back.

"Crab!" Happy shouted. "I bet he'll say 'kani' at the end of his sentences! I'm one hundred percent sure! He is a crab! I know it. It's expected!"

"That's right, Happy!" Natsu agreed.

As if destroying Happy and Natsu's expectation, Cancer said, "Lucy, what kind of hair style would you like today-ebi?"

"Ebi!" Natsu and Happy shouted from shock.

"Cancer! Finish that moustache guy off!" Lucy ordered her spirit as she took out her whip. "Natsu, we'll take out the other guys!"

"Alright!" Natsu shifted into a battle stance.

Everlue took out a golden key. "Open! A door to the virgin! Virgo!"

"Same magic as Lucy?" Happy said.

Another golden circle appeared, and this time, the large, ugly maid appeared. "How may I help you, my master?"

"Virgo! Retrieve that book." Everlue pointed at the book Lucy held with her hand.

Lucy pulled back her hand holding the whip, and swung it. She was attacking the Vanish Brothers; however, both dodged the attack. Luckily, the taller of the Vanish Brothers was immediately knocked out by Natsu's dragon roar once he left the ground, leaving him exposed to attacks for a moment in midair. The shorter of the Vanish Brothers was hit on the head and knocked unconscious by a heavy book that Happy threw.

Turning back, Virgo was sprawled on the ground. Apparently, Cancer was able to take her out.

"I can't believe Virgo was taken out!" Everlue shouted.

"This shows that I'm a stronger Celestial Wizard than you." Lucy swung her whip, which coiled around Everlue's wrist. "Natsu!"

Lucy pulled her whip, and Everlue was thrown in midair. Natsu jumped and attacked Everlue with a flame infused punch, knocking the duke unconscious.

"Nice job, Lucy! You truly are a mage of Fairy Tail!" Natsu praised.

Lucy smiled. "Let's go get this book to Kaby then."

With a grin plastered on her face, she grabbed Natsu's hand and ran. Natsu also had a grin on his face. With his magic, Happy flew. The retrieval being a success, the three escaped Everlue's mansion.

* * *

 **A/N: I'm sorry if you readers don't find the end of this chapter satisfying, especially the fight scene. Honestly speaking, I didn't like to drag this chapter any longer. I could have written a better fight scene, but I wanted to finish this chapter as soon as possible. Besides, it would be quite weird if Lucy wasn't able to take down simple opponents when her magic power is at the level during the Grand Magic Games. I might even update this chapter for a better fight scene in the future. The choice to edit this chapter would depend on my mood and spare time. Currently, I want to write a few more chapters before I even think of editing.**


	5. Chapter 5: Plan

Lucy was in a state of bliss.

She was sitting in the train heading to Oshibana town. Joining Lucy in this mission were her future teammates: Natsu, Gray, Erza, and Happy. Lucy smiled. Today was the day when Team Natsu was formed.

Erza was a renowned mage throughout Fiore. She was called Titania, the Queen of Fairies, for she was the strongest female mage in Fairy Tail. She had a slender and curvaceous body with long scarlet hair. She wore an armor with the Heurt Creuz emblem, the brand for the famous shop, a blue skirt, and a pair of black boots. Her brown eyes were stern, but there were signs of kindness beneath those stern look.

Beside the armored mage, Natsu was unconscious, which Erza caused by punching the Fire Dragonslayer's stomach. Currently, his head lay on Erza's lap. Gray sat beside Lucy.

Surprisingly, Gray was wearing clothes although there would be a time when he would remove them. He had on a long white coat over his black shirt and black pants.

The whole team except Natsu were listening to Erza, who explained about overhearing some men in a bar discussing about Lullaby and its seal.

"Lullaby?" Gray said.

"Yes. I don't know what it is…" Erza said, "… but since it is sealed, it probably contains some powerful magic."

"I don't get it… so you come across some folks who wanted to break the seal of some unknown magic… maybe that's all it was, their job… nothing special."

"Yeah… that's what I told myself, too, and didn't give it anymore thought… until I remembered the name Erigor."

Remembering the name from her memories, Lucy continued, "Isn't Erigor the ace from the mage guild Eisenwald? He was called Shinigami Erigor…"

"It's a nickname people gave because he kept taking up assassination requests. The council prohibits mages from taking assassination requests, but Eisenwald chose money," Erza explained as the train stopped moving. "So then, six years ago… the guild was ousted from the mage guild league… and is now categorized as a Dark Guild."

The conversation continued as the team walked out of the train. Lucy asked, "Since they have been ousted, didn't they get ousted?"

"They were. Eisenwald's master was arrested, and the guild was ordered to disband themselves. Though, most of the 'Dark Guilds' keep on functioning regardless and ignore the order."

"I see…" Gray said.

"It was a blunder on my part… if only I remembered the name Erigor back then at the bar…" Erza was emitting bloodlust, "… I would've put them all in a blood offering…"

"Right…" Gray slowly spoke, "… if it were just the folks at the scene, you probably could handle them by yourself, Erza. But when it's the entire guild…"

"They got a hold of this magic called 'Lullaby' and are plotting something. I judged that we cannot overlook this matter."

"So…" Lucy tapped her hand on her keys, "… we'll march into Eisenwald?"

Erza nodded, confirming Lucy's answer.

"And…" Gray said as the whole team was walking through the streets, "… do you know where Eisenwald is?"

"We came to this town to find out about that," Erza replied.

Happy flew around the three talking mages. "You guys… do you know where Natsu is?"

* * *

"Natsu! Are you okay?" Erza shouted as she stopped the magical four-wheeled vehicle. The whole team had been catching up with the train that departed with their Fire Dragonslayer, who couldn't get off of the vehicle due to his motion sickness. They were almost to the train when Natsu jumped out of the vehicle and flew towards Gray, bumping both of their heads together.

The two boys were on the ground. The two immediately sat up, and Gray shouted at Natsu, "What the heck are you doing, Natsu, you punk!"

"I lost my memory from the shock just now. Who are you?" Natsu said. "You smell."

"What!"

With Erza and Lucy following behind, Happy flew towards the salmon-haired teen. "Natsu, we're sorry."

"Happy! Erza! Lucy! You're terrible! How could you leave me behind?" Natsu yelled in annoyance while the two girls apologized.

Erza smiled as she grabbed Natsu's head and smashed it against her chest, which is covered by the metal armor that she wore. "I'm happy that you're safe."

Natsu winced in pain from his head being smashed against Erza's strong armor. He grabbed Erza's hand and pulled away from the hold. "How am I safe? A weirdo tried to pick a fight with me!"

"I just remembered!" Lucy exclaimed, grabbing the attention of her companions.

"Remember what?" Gray asked.

"Lullaby, the magic of death," Lucy said. "It's a flute with a three-eyed skull."

"Flute? Oh I saw a flute with a skull on one end of it from the weirdo from… what was it… Ei… sen… wald?" Natsu said.

Immediately, Erza punched Natsu's face. "Idiot! Eisenwald is what we're after!"

"A-anyway," Lucy interrupted, "there is such a thing as 'murder by curse' among the forbidden magic, right?"

"That's right… just like the name implies, it'll curse the target and cast 'Death'. It's a black magic," Erza answered.

"Lullaby is worse than that. It's a mass-curse murder magic that puts a death curse on everyone who hears its melody."

Everyone was silent. Lucy let her companions processed the information she told them. She already knew Eisenwald's plan, but should she tell them? If she did, there could be a chance that Natsu's wouldn't get stronger.

Before coming back to the past, Lucy was thinking of ways to defeat Zeref. She had tried to make many possible solutions, but because of Zeref's immorality, she couldn't come up with anything except for one: making Natsu Dragneel stronger. Zeref explained his plan to die to the whole Fairy Tail guild before Natsu's demise. He wanted to let his little brother, Natsu Dragneel, be strong enough to destroy him. His plan had a chance to succeed; however, everyone in the guild didn't want Natsu to destroy Zeref. If Zeref was destroyed, Natsu would also be destroyed. Lucy didn't want to manipulate her best friend, but this was the solution available. Until she found another solution, Lucy would help Natsu become stronger.

"Mass-curse murder magic? If Erigor got a hold of such a thing…" Erza gritted her teeth. "… bastards! What are they trying to do!"

"That really is bad. We have to get back then," Gray said.

Her mind arriving at a decision, Lucy spoke, "Wait! I think I know what Eisenwald is doing."

"Really?" Erza said.

"Yes, although it's based on what you guys told me." Lucy closed her eyes to gather her thoughts before opening them. "They are probably going to use it against a group of people, and since their headquarters are in Oshibana Town…"

"Are they going to use it against the people over there! Then we have to—" Erza was interrupted by Gray.

"—Hold on… isn't this flute supposed to cast a death curse to those who hears its melody? Do you think that's enough to kill the whole town?" He asked.

"No," Lucy answered, "but there is one way to do so. They could use the broadcasting system of the station."

"If they do that, then it's possible for killing a whole town," Erza said.

"That's right." Lucy nodded and then looked up at the blue, cloudy sky. "But is that really Eisenwald's plan?"

"What do you mean?"

"What would they get from killing a whole town? I doubt they would do it for fame."

"You're saying that they have another ulterior motive?" Gray asked.

"That's right. I think Eisenwald knew about our attack against them, so they're using the plan 'to attack Oshibana Town with Lullaby' as a distraction," Lucy explained. "They are planning to attack a specific group of people."

"What group would they use the Lullaby for?" Erza muttered.

"If I remember correctly," Lucy said, her gaze not wavering from the sky, "there's a Guild Masters' regular meeting in Clover Town, right?"

* * *

Laxus was standing a few feet away from the front doors of another Dark Guild. "Damn it. How many Dark Guilds are there?"

Laxus didn't know what to do when he came back to the past. He didn't even know how to change the future. Instead, he had been destroying Dark Guilds for the past few weeks since his return to the past. Since most of the Dark Guilds were somehow related to Zeref—either by trying to resurrect him or harness his creations—Laxus established his goal of destroying as many Dark Guilds he could. Obviously, he wouldn't be able to take down these Dark Guild with the Thunder God Tribe, especially Freed, following him.

"Laxus. I finished writing my runes around the building," a voice from behind said.

"Freed," Laxus said as he turned to look at his long green-haired friend, "good job."

Freed had greenish blue eyes. Under his left eye, he had a beauty mark. His bangs were swept to one side. He was a slim young man wearing a knee-length red coat with a pair of buckle belts around his waist where his rapier was strapped.

"… Laxus… are you really alright?" Freed asked.

"Hm? Of course I am," Laxus answered. "Why are you asking me that?"

"You seem… different," Freed said.

"Am I?" Laxus turned to the Dark Guild. "Gather the others and we'll begin attacking."

"O-of course."

Laxus heard Freed's steps slowly quieten, a sign that the green-haired individual walking away. Laxus thought of the blonde Celestial Spirit mage he last saw before passing through the portal.

"Lucy…" Laxus muttered as he looked up at the sky, "… did you make it?"

* * *

 **A/N: Do you think the pace of the story is fast? I wanted to quickly get over some chapters after all. I also appreciate anyone who could point out grammatical mistakes throughout the story. Hopefully, my future self will do the editing. Also, I apologize if the characters throughout the story doesn't stay in character. Although I had read the original work again, I cannot guarantee that characters of Fairy Tail will still be the same throughout the story.  
**


	6. Chapter 6: Lullaby's Havoc

The whole team were running to Clover Town. The plan went along well. Natsu and Happy would be blocking the railway somewhere in the cliffs where they would have to fight against Eisenwald's ace mage, Erigor the Shinigami, while the rest of the team would go back to Oshinabi Town and defeat the remaining Eisenwald members before catching up with the Fire Dragonslayer and his cat partner. Lucy even managed to get Virgo's key from Happy, who immediately gave it to the blonde, when she purposely mentioned of forgetting to take the Celestial gold key from Everlue.

When the rest of Team Natsu caught up with Natsu and Happy, they cheered from succeeding the mission. Lucy was even praised by Erza, who was quite impressed by the blonde's intelligence for figuring out Eisenwald's plans. However, their joys were short-lived when one of Eisenwald's members, Kageyama, the one Natsu dubbed as the 'weirdo who picked a fight with him', snatched the Lullaby from them and proceeded to go to Clover Town using a magic four wheeler vehicle that he stole from Team Natsu. Apparently, the Eisenwald mage managed to sneak in the vehicle. Lucy reminded herself not to be lax again. She was easily getting affected by the peaceful atmosphere.

The whole team were able to reach Clover Town by night. They quickly rushed to the where the guild masters' meeting took place. When they got to the place, they were immediately stopped by an old cross-dressing man named Bob, the Guild Master of Blue Pegasus.

"Shhh!" He hushed. "The best part is coming up. Just watch." He looked at Natsu and Gray. "Wait, you guys are cute."

Both Gray and Natsu felt chills in their spine.

"Blue Pegasus Master!" Erza said.

"My Erza-chan, you've grown," the cross-dresser said.

"What's going on? Hurry up already," the voice of Master Makarov said.

The whole team watched the scene. Master Makarov stood in front of Kageyama with a flute on his hands and his lips near the flute's mouthpiece.

"No!" Erza yelled. She was about to rush towards Kageyama when another Guild Master stopped her.

"Just stay quiet. This should be interesting," another elderly man dressed in simple black clothes and a black pointed hat with spikes around the bow of the hat. His name was Goldmine, the Guild Master of Quatro Cerberos.

"Now," Master Makarov said with a commanding tone. He waited for the music to play. When Kageyama took too much time, the little old man spoke, "Nothing will change."

Kageyama stood still from the old man's words.

Makarov continued to talk. His words reverberated in the still night. Lucy listened attentively, her heart warmed at the speech. Even now, the old man's words were brimming with wisdom.

Minutes later, Kageyama dropped on his knees. The flute fell from his hands.

"I admit my loss," Kageyama said.

Afterwards, the whole team decided to show themselves until a deep malevolent laughter rang.

"Kakaka…" the voice laughed, "… you mages have no guts."

Everyone stared at the flute with the three-eyed skull. It had purple smoke coming out of the skull's mouth.

"I can't hold it any longer. I'll just eat all of you myself," the flute spoke as it transformed into gigantic wooden beast. "Let me consume your pitiful souls…"

The beast was humongous. Its three eyes eerily glowed purple, and its hands with sharp claws seemed capable of demolishing a large building. Its body had many cutout parts, especially the stomach. Vicious magic power rippling throughout the air sent cold chills through each and every mage's spine. With a loud roar that emitted large gusts of wind all over the place, the creature let loose the feeling of dread.

"I'm starving to death," it said, "so I'm gonna eat your souls."

"What!" Natsu shouted. With childish astonishment, he faced Gray. "Are souls edible?"

"How would I know!" Gray retorted.

"That Devil is the lullaby itself. Meaning, it's a living magic. That's Zeref's magic," Master Goldmine explained.

"Living magic…" Erza whispered.

Gray looked at Goldmine. "Zeref? You mean, Zeref from the ancient times!"

"Dark Mage Zeref," Master Bob said, "the most atrocious mage in the history or magic… I never imagined that this adverse legacy from several hundred years ago would reappear…"

"Now… whose soul should I enjoy first? I've decided" the beast said, its mouth ajar. "All of yours."

Immediately, Erza, Gray, and Natsu rushed to the creature. The female knight used her magic, Requip: The Knight, to change into her Heaven's Wheel Armor.

Erza had on a large billowing skirt with metal plating. Her bosom was covered with the armor's metal plating. Erza had large metal wingl-like structure behind her armor. On each hand, she held a sword.

She soared in the air and slashed with her two swords at one of the beast's leg. The beast let out a groan from the scarlet-haired knight. Natsu used the slight opportunity to send a flame-infused kick at the beast's head. Lullaby was slightly knocked away, but it retaliated by sending a myriad of magic bullets from its mouth at Natsu, who easily dodged the attack by twisting his body in midair.

Unfortunately, the magic bullets were about to harm the guild masters. Many masters were panicking.

"Ice Make…" Gray chanted, "… Shield!"

A large flower-shaped shield made out of ice appeared in front of the Ice Make mage. It stopped Lullaby's magic bullets. Astonished at the speed of the magic, the Guild Masters talked among themselves.

Gray placed his hands forward. "Ice Make Lance!"

Thousands of ice spears shot towards Lullaby, who wasn't given a chance to move.

Gray shouted, "Now!"

Lucy knew that her team would win without her help, but her intuition told her the opposite that, somehow, her team would lose. Why was her intuition telling her this? What made this creature different from the one in her memories?

Erza changed her armor once more. She wore her Black Wing Armor, a black armor with silver linings in the edges. Silver crosses adorned the armor in several places. This armor granted Erza increased offensive power. With a sword in hand, Erza took off in the air and slashed Lullaby.

As soon as the scarlet-haired knight used her blade, Natsu threw a large fireball towards the beast. "Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame!"

The assault of ice, flames, and swords dealt massive damage to the beast. However, the beast continued to fight back. It swiped its arms and shot magic bullets from its mouth at its opponents.

As if shocked by lightning, Lucy realized the discrepancy between the monster that her team was facing and the monster from her future self's memories. Unlike the creature in her memories, Lullaby wasn't defeated quickly. Could this Lullaby be stronger than it was supposed to be?

Lucy didn't want to wait for her question to be answered. She looked around. The guild masters were standing with expressions of awe and anticipation. Lucy needed something that could probably save everyone should anything turn wrong.

 _Pitter-patter_.

Rain slowly fell as the fight between the three mages and the beast continued. Lucy felt the cold droplets of water hit her body. She smiled. This weather was what she needed.

The beast let out shrill cry, a hurricane of wind moving all over the place. The beast opened its mouth, and slowly purple light was slowly growing. "Damn you mages! I'll blow everything away!"

"Oh no… we're all dead," one of the guild masters panicked.

Lucy took out one of her golden keys. "Gate of the Water Bearer, I open thee, Aquarius!"

Using the rain as a medium to summon her powerful Zodiac spirit, Lucy summoned her ill-tempered spirit.

"Oi Brat! Why the hell are you summoning me at this hour?" Aquarius said as she glared at her master.

Lucy was bombarded with many emotions—happiness, anticipation, and fear—once she saw her spirit. Lucy had many things to say to her water spirit.

"S-sorry…" Lucy said.

She had many things to say, yet she chose to apologize! What was she saying? She was supposed to say something else other than apologies. Of course, Lucy felt guilty of using her water spirit's key as a sacrifice to summon the Celestial Spirit King, but she believed that having a serious conversation in the middle of a battle wasn't the best time.

"Aquarius," Lucy said, her voice bearing a commanding tone, "please, I need your help."

Aquarius opened her mouth to retort but stopped. The water spirit noticed the commanding tone in her master's voice. Aquarius faced her master, whom the water spirit deemed as unworthy, but the person, who Aquarius saw, wasn't showing any qualities of being bratty, spoiled, and naïve. Her master showed grace and regality.

Lucy didn't realize that she used her commanding voice towards her spirit. She only used that voice during strategic meetings and against her opponents.

Aquarius let out a sound of annoyance. "Whatever brat. I'll finish this quick before I go back to the spirit world." Aquarius gathered all the water from the rain into her urn. "Ora!"

As if throwing a bucket of water, Aquarius shot a powerful pillar of water from her urn to Lullaby's mouth.

 _Boom!_

The powerful water attack let a booming sound to reverberate everywhere. Lullaby stumbled and fell on the ground with a loud thud.

Lucy could hear surprised chatters of the guild masters.

"That's Celestial Spirit magic! And one of the Zodiac spirits as well!" one of the guild masters exclaimed.

"To think that her spirit was powerful enough to knock off the Lullaby on the ground," another guild master commented.

"Isn't she Makarov's new member? I can't believe Fairy Tail got such a promising mage. Fairy Tail already has Erza Scarlet."

Ignoring the praises, Lucy thanked her spirit. "Thank you, Aquarius."

"Hmph! I'm leaving. Don't call me for another week because I'm going on a date with my boyfriend. Got it?" the water spirit declared.

"Yes," Lucy replied, "have fun then."

She was given an unreadable look from Aquarius before the water spirit closed her gate and went back to the Celestial Spirit World.

Lucy heard the telltale sign of victory from the guild masters' cheers. She saw her teammates coming back with bruises and cuts. Lucy gave them a thumbs-up for a job well done.

* * *

 **A/N: Hello everyone. I'd like to thank you all for continuing to read this work. I appreciate the supports and reviews you have given my work so far. My holiday is over, so I don't think I'd be able to update this work quickly. I will give my best to update as quickly as I can. Be sure to fave, follow, and review this work. Stay tuned for the next chapter.  
**


	7. Chapter 7: S-Class Mages

A few hours ago, Erza was arrested. Many people had been quite distressed about her predicament. Lucy knew that the Council convicted Erza in order to show as if they were enforcing the law. In other words, Erza wouldn't have to be punished, but the idiotic Fire Dragonslayer had to make a ruckus and destroy half of the courtroom.

"The air is way better outdoors!" Natsu cried. "It's really the best!"

Natsu continued shouting and expressing his gained freedom, and the others were annoyed by his antics. Conversations among guild mates burst out. The silent and gloomy atmosphere surrounding the guild was replaced with a lively and boisterous one. When Natsu realized that his duel with Erza was undecided, he challenged the scarlet-haired knight once more only to get knocked unconscious from one hit by the said knight.

Everyone laughed at Natsu's defeat until each and every guild mate dropped on the floor. Some of them had his or her head on the table. A man dressed in dark blue cloak entered through the guild doors. He went to the request board and grabbed a paper.

"I'm leaving," the man said as he gave the paper to Master Makarov.

"Hey! Release your sleep magic!" the old man replied.

"Mystogan," a female voice said.

The man called Mystogan and the Master of Fairy Tail noticed an awake Lucy sitting in one of the guild chairs. The two were surprised to see one of the guild members awake from the powerful sleep magic.

"How did…" Mystogan started.

"I know a spell when I see one," Lucy explained. "This spell is strong, but only those with a strong mentality than the user cannot be affected by the spell."

Despite knowing the spell, Lucy was having difficulty to stay awake. Her eyelids were getting heavier for each passing second, and Lucy was tempted to close them. Regardless, Lucy couldn't exactly let herself fall for the spell. How could she defeat Zeref, an immortal and powerful mage, if she couldn't resist Mystogan's sleep spell? What was the point of altering the future if she was weak? She didn't want to be protected once more by her friends. Lucy would be strong. She didn't want to rely on luck anymore. In the future, she would always be the only survivor after a difficult battle. She had seen many people die protecting her. She would see her unlucky friends die in front of her. Lucy remembered the time when a powerful blast from Etherion hit Sabertooth's headquarters, killing every Sabertooth members in the vicinity. She was supposed to visit Sabertooth for a strategic meeting; however, a powerful storm delayed her travels. By the time she got there, only a barren and desolate land was left. If there was no storm, Lucy would have died along with Sabertooth.

"Lucy…" Makarov said, "… to think you'd be able to stand against Mystogan's sleep magic."

Lucy smiled. "Master, knowing the spell itself helps in being prepared against it."

In the future, Lucy had spent her free time reading different magic books. She would study the fundamentals of every magic from books that she scavenged and come up different methods to face against an opponent with a magic that Lucy had prior knowledge. Abundant knowledge was necessary in a war. She would have to fight mages, each one learning different magic. Unlike her strong friends, she didn't have the monster-like stamina and strength to defeat her enemies, but she had her intellect. She wasn't granted a strong body that could obliterate foes. She was granted a keen mind, and she would use it.

"Who are you?" Mystogan asked.

"She's new in Fairy Tail," Makarov answered. "Her name is Lucy."

"Don't worry Mystogan," Lucy suddenly said. "I won't tell anyone how you look like if that's what you want."

Mystogan was silent. He slowly nodded his head before leaving the guild. As soon as the cloaked mage left, everyone in the guild opened his or her eyes.

"Th-this feeling… was it Mystogan?" one of the guild members asked.

"His sleep magic was so powerful!" another exclaimed.

Lucy looked around. Everyone seemed to be fine as if the whole phenomenon of being affected by a powerful sleep magic was a daily occurrence. Then again, most of the members grew up in the guild.

"He's one of the strongest mage candidates in Fairy Tail," Loke said as if trying to answer Lucy whom he thought was affected by the enigmatic mage's magic. Realizing that he was close to Lucy, he distanced himself from her.

Lucy felt hurt from the action. She could understand her friend's intention. Loke was the banished Leo of the Zodiacs from the Celestial Spirit World, and he knew that his identity would be revealed once he was near a Stellar Spirit mage, especially one with a Zodiac key. Lucy couldn't wait for the day that she would bring back her friend to his home.

Gray saw Loke moving away from Lucy. Knowing his friend's fear of Stellar Spirit mages, the Ice Make mage continued, "For some reason, he hates to be seen, so whenever he comes to pick a job, he puts everyone to sleep. That's why only Master knows Mystogan's face."

When Gray finished explaining, Natsu's loud voice shouted, "Laxus! Fight me!"

Lucy turned around to see a tall man wearing a leopard print shirt and a fur cape on his shoulders. His blonde hair was spiked back with a small tuft of it falling down on his forehead. On his right eye, he had a lightning bolt-shaped scar. He was walking down the stairs leading to the second floor.

"He's also one of the strongest mage candidates," Gray said as he watched the tall man descend the stairs.

"No," the Laxus replied, "you'll only damage the guild, Natsu."

Surprised by the answer, everyone hushed their conversations. Laxus was supposed to be arrogant, selfish, and self-centered, yet he didn't show those qualities. Everyone in the guild, even the master himself, were stunned by Laxus's change in personality. Seeing Laxus answer back normally to a fellow guild mate was a strange sight.

Laxus didn't know what he was doing. In fact, he was quite surprised by his actions. When he saw the blonde Celestial Spirit mage awake from Mystogan's powerful sleep magic, he was certain that the girl received the memories from the future timeline, yet how should he tell her? Maybe, he could wait in her apartment.

"Mira…" Laxus said as he gave a paper to the white-haired barmaid, "… I'm going to do this job."

"Eh?" Mirajane said before slowly taking the paper from the blonde man's hand. "Ah, sure thing, Laxus."

"Laxus! I said to fight me!" With his fists in flames, Natsu charged at the blonde man.

Laxus sidestepped the punch thrown at him. He grabbed Natsu's arm and sent a powerful lightning shock that knocked out the salmon-haired Fire Dragonslayer. Natsu was on the floor, yellow bolts sparking throughout the teen's body.

Watching the spectacle happening in front of her, Lucy found herself in a predicament. She didn't know whether Laxus's change in personality was actually another difference in this timeline or a person with memories of the future. If Lucy asked the blonde Lightning Dragonslayer and received suspicious looks, altering the future would be more difficult. On the other hand, if the blonde man had memories of the future, altering the future would be easier. After careful thinking, Lucy decided to confront the blonde man in a roundabout way.

Lucy stood up and slowly neared the blonde man. Feeling the embarrassment from what she was going to do, she stood in front of him. She opened her mouth.

"Excuse me, have we met before?" she asked as she tilted her head sideways. God, she should have worded the question differently. Looking at it from another person's view, she seemed to be flirting with a standard pickup line to the blonde man.

Laxus was trying hard not to laugh. Of course, the girl wouldn't know if it was him, so she was confirming it through an indirect question. The first master didn't specify the guild what time period would their memories be sent. Still, couldn't the blonde girl in front of him phrased the question in another way? Now, how should Laxus answer back? Technically, this was their first meeting, yet he had memories of the future about her. He could feel the stares from his fellow guild mates awaiting for his response.

"… I guess?" he merely said.

Was that a question or an answer? Which was it? Mentally cursing, Lucy smiled albeit strained at the blonde man. She could see the recognition in his eyes when she thoroughly looked at his face.

With a look of recognition on her face, Lucy said, "Ah! You're the guy that helped me out before! I'd like to 'thank' you for your help."

She slightly emphasized the word 'thank', so she could indirectly say 'meet-up'. She knew that the Lightning Dragonslayer could notice the sudden shift in her tone because of his enhanced hearing. Laxus nodded in reply.

"Anytime," the man said before leaving the guild.

Sighing, Lucy felt as if a heavy burden was lifted from her shoulders. Now, she turned around and faced against the puzzling faces of her guild mates. She could see the ridiculous conclusions forming. How could she defuse these ideas?

* * *

After a tantalizing amount of time convincing her guild, Lucy was walking back to her apartment. She had to weave an amazing lie that could literally stop any rumors between Laxus and her. She told them that Laxus was an incredible and strong guy to save her from some thugs before joining Fairy Tail. This lie promptly shot down every wrong and misleading idea. There were some disbelieving looks from the others until Lucy added that Laxus seemed to be a calm individual. After Laxus's change of attitude today, most were convinced about Lucy's story. One of the perks of being an author was using creativity to concoct well-made stories… or lies.

Lucy saw Laxus standing in front of her apartment door. She walked towards him. "We have a lot to discuss."

Laxus grunted as he moved away from the door, letting the blonde girl unlock it. He followed her into her apartment. Even in the future, he hadn't been to her apartment. In fact, he didn't know anything personal about her.

Entering the apartment, Laxus smelled the scent of wood, strawberries, and ink. The walls were painted pink. Large and spacious, the room had a lot of furniture. The bed with pink covers was placed beside the window. Lucy even had a dining table with three chairs and a coffee table with an armchair. Across the bed, there was a large bookcase filled with many books. The desk had neatly stacked papers, an ink, and a fountain pen. The apartment brought a cozy and homey feeling.

Lucy gestured Laxus to sit in one of the chairs and went to the kitchen. Laxus sat and waited for the blonde girl to come back. They had a lot to discuss, especially on what to do. Laxus smelled coffee wafting. Lucy probably made drinks for the two of them. She came back with two cups of hot coffee.

"Here," she said as she handed a cup to Laxus, "it's better if we have something to drink."

Laxus took the cup. "Thanks… I'm glad you made it."

He took a sip of the drink. The bitter taste of coffee touched his taste buds, and the hot liquid going through his throat filled his body with heat.

"What have you been doing, Laxus?" Lucy asked, "I just got here around four days ago."

"I didn't know what to do when I got back," Laxus answered. "All I've been doing was defeating dark guilds. I thought it would be best to reduce the amount of potential enemies."

"… I see. That could probably be helpful."

"How are you anyway?"

Lucy blinked. "What?"

"I thought you'd be happy to see everyone again." Laxus placed his half-filled cup of coffee on the table.

"I am…" Lucy replied, "… it's just…"

She stopped speaking. Laxus noticed how stiff her shoulders were.

"Lucy… you have to tell me what's bothering you. We're the only ones with a chance of defeating Zeref, and we wouldn't accomplish that with you not focused," he said.

She nodded. "… I just think that… being so close yet so far from the others is…"

"… difficult?"

She nodded in return. "Yeah. Seeing them alive and energetic was wonderful, but the bonds with them are not there. To me, they are my family, but to them, I'm just a newcomer, a stranger… I had to control myself to stop crying for each and every little detail that I see them do.

"… You know, Laxus. Seeing Natsu alive again made me really happy and hurt at the same time. I was happy because I finally saw the person who I loved again, but I was also hurt because I can't feel the closeness I shared with him anymore. I just wanted to wrap my arms around him and never let him go. Sometimes, I felt myself changing into a darker person. I'm afraid of the person I'm becoming. God, Laxus… I even planned to use Natsu against Zeref!

"Laxus… is it wrong for me to feel this way? To abandon this mission? I wanted to protect everyone by whisking them away somewhere else and hiding them from Zeref. I don't want to see them die again…"

Lucy didn't realize the tears falling from her eyes until she touched her damped cheeks. She rubbed her eyes as if willing the tears to go away.

Laxus didn't know how to deal with crying girls, but he felt that the girl needed to let her suppressed feelings out, so he tried his best to be comforting. Instinctively, he moved beside the girl and wrapped his arms around her.

"… I know how you feel. We're both in the same positions," he whispered in her ear, "but we got this chance, Lucy. We can fix many things… we can even fix the nonexistent bonds, and possibly even make them stronger than ever, so don't cry anymore. Save those tears for when we finally save our friends. I'm here with you now. You're not alone anymore."

Lucy leaned her head in Laxus's chest. She could hear the comforting voice whispering in her ear. The pent-up emotions that she locked away in her heart were flowing out. She felt her eyelids growing heavy. She closed her eyes as sleep finally took her.

Throughout the day, Laxus never released his arms around Lucy as he whispered comforting words.

* * *

 **A/N: Finally, a chapter completed. I hope that you found this chapter satisfying. I know you guys wanted to see how Laxus and Lucy reunite, and I apologize if this wasn't what you expected. I had a difficult time to come up on how the reunion will work. When Lucy asked Laxus, I was debating between his awkward social character or his sadistic side. I tried to add a bit of humor in my work, but I think I failed in that field. Oh well, no use crying over spilled milk, right? Many thanks for the supports and reviews. I really appreciate the reviews that you wrote. I realized that my chapters seemed so short. The paragraphs that I wrote in the Word Document don't even look like paragraphs in Fanfiction. Then again, I formatted my fonts in the Word Document. Also, I was thinking of doing weekly updates starting today. I don't know if I can, but I will do my best. Don't forget to fave, follow, and review this chapter.**


	8. Chapter 8: To the Island of Demons

Sitting in the corner of the guild's first floor and savoring the alcoholic taste of his drink, Laxus slowly drank his beer.

After Lucy slept herself from crying, Laxus carried the blonde girl to her bed. He wanted to stay with her, but he knew that Natsu would visit the apartment soon. Laxus would have to leave immediately if he didn't want to be suspicious.

Now, he was back in the guild, drinking beer before leaving for his next job. He noticed a blue blur moving towards the second floor's request board a few minutes ago. Of course, just like last time, he ignored it, knowing that the mission was needed to get one of Lucy's Zodiac keys. Laxus would have done the job, but he knew that Lucy wouldn't appreciate getting the key without her doing the work. She would have flat-out refused. Besides, the girl probably wanted to gather her friends by herself, and Laxus, giving his support, would just watch her.

In the future, he was disheartened that no one was able to reach Kardia Cathedral. Everyone in the guild was determined to alter the future, making promises to one another. Unfortunately, no one except Laxus was able to pull through the promise. If he were his old self, he would mock and jeer at the weak people. He would brag to be the strongest mage in Fairy Tail. Now, he didn't want to be the strongest anymore. Being the strongest meant being alone. Laxus just wanted someone to share this burden. He was hoping for anyone to enter those double doors, but his hopes were slowly dwindling as time passed by.

Laxus was drowned in his negative thoughts. He was going to be alone. He would return back to the past and see the nonexistent bonds with his guild. Everyone in the past would see Laxus as arrogant and self-centered. Because he was strong, he would venture this difficult journey alone just like always. How many times would he have to see his friends die before his eyes? How many times would he be the only survivor in battle? Why was he even becoming stronger if the others died together because they were weak?

Laxus was brought out of his pessimism when he heard double doors flung open. With his enhanced vision granted by his Dragonslayer magic, he saw Lucy Heartfilia running with the army behind her. He felt hope rise in his chest. He couldn't believe someone actually reached the cathedral other than him. His heart sang from joy and relief. Laxus wasn't alone anymore. He shouted at the blonde girl to hurry and wished for her safe return to the past before jumping into the portal.

"Oh no!" Mirajane cried as she hastily walked down the stairs. "Master! One of the requests on the second floor is missing!"

Master Makarov, who was in the middle of drinking his beer, spat out the liquor from his mouth. Everyone in the guild was silent as each member realized the situation.

Sighing, Laxus placed his mug of beer on the table. "Happy took the job."

"Happy!" Mirajane exclaimed.

"This means that Lucy and Natsu are also responsible!" a member of the guild added.

The mutterings of the guild grew louder as time passed. Laxus could hear the disapproving comments towards the Fire Dragonslayer's actions.

Mirajane walked to Laxus, a glare adorning her face. "Laxus! If you knew about this, why didn't you try to stop them!"

"This is bad… which job is missing?" Makarov asked.

"The cursed Galuna Island job," Mirajane answered.

"The Island of Demons!" Makarov shouted, horror etched on his face. "Laxus, bring them back!"

Laxus placed his mug down on the table. "Sorry Gramps, but I have a job to do. I think they'll be fine. Natsu basically partnered himself with an S-class mage already."

Like a wildfire, questions were thrown from one person to another. People in the guild were wondering about Laxus's statement. Some had disbelieving looks on their faces.

"Are you talking about Lucy?" Mirajane asked. "Laxus! She's just a new member of the guild! She can't take an S-class—"

"—She's the only person, other than Gramps and I, awake from Mystogan's powerful sleep magic," Laxus reasoned.

"What!" Mirajane turned and questioned Fairy Tail's third master. "Master, is that true?"

Laxus didn't know if he wanted to alter the future this much. Spreading around Lucy's capabilities could possibly alter the future too much. Then again, his change of personality had already created a lot of difference. His team was already suspicious of him. For the past few weeks, Laxus had been convincing the Thunder God Tribe to converse with the other members of the guild. This action caused him to receive wary gazes. Laxus didn't even know what to do. He wondered why he even became such a jackass before.

"Yes, Mira. Laxus said the truth." the old man sighed, expressing his weariness at the situation. "I agree with you, Laxus, that Lucy could be a potential S-class mage. She joined the guild a few days ago, and I have learned a lot about her from those few days. Despite the lack of strength, she compensate her weakness with her intelligence. She's mentally strong, and her magic power isn't something to underestimate as well… however…"

"Still worrying?" Laxus said.

"Lucy is still new to the guild. She doesn't have enough experience in doing missions."

Laxus scoffed at this explanation. He knew that the blonde had a lot of experience, especially in a war.

"Then send someone with them."

* * *

"Thank you for coming here, mages… hoga, hoga…" the mayor of Galuna Island said.

Before finding a boat to go to Galuna Island, Gray caught up with Natsu and Lucy. Unlike the previous timeline, Gray was joining this mission instead of taking them back. After boarding a boat, the three mages and the blue cat, Happy, of Fairy Tail got swept up by a powerful tidal wave. Fortunately, Lucy was able to summon her clock spirit, Horologium, in time to protect themselves from the waves. The space inside was cramped to the three mages and blue cat since the clock could only store at least two average-size human beings. Now, they were standing in front of the villagers who were wearing robes.

"I'm sorry if this seems sudden, but please look at this. Everyone take off your robes," the mayor said as he removed his robe.

As instructed, every villager removed his or her robe. The villagers showed their demonic features to the mages. The mayor explained the situation, convinced that the villagers were cursed by the moon's moonlight. Lucy looked up to see the purple moon shone its moonlight. From her future memories, she remembered that the villagers weren't affected by a curse. In fact, they were actually demons themselves.

"Well, we'll probably stay the night first. We'll start this request tomorrow morning," Gray suggested.

"B-but the moon is right there. Could you not just destroy it?" the mayor pointed at the ominous purple moon.

"We'd like to find more information by exploring the island," Lucy answered, "and we could find an easier method than destroying the moon to lift the curse."

"All right," the mayor said before one of the villagers led the mages to one of the huts.

The team slept after discussing the curse. As the two boys and blue cat slept soundly, Lucy leaned forward to the window, her mind assessing her thoughts. She couldn't stop thinking about the inevitable war against Zeref. She was still afraid. She couldn't stop asking herself so many questions. What if she didn't change the future? What if many still died? What if Natsu died protecting her again?

Despite seeing Laxus, Lucy's doubts to change the future didn't lessen. She was happy that another person who experience the future was with her. If she were alone, she couldn't handle the burden. She looked behind her and saw her teammates sleeping. Gray had removed his clothes, and the blanket was the only object covering his private essentials. Natsu was snoring loudly. On the other hand, his partner, Happy, was sleeping on the table, his body curled up.

Looking at her precious people, Lucy strengthened her resolve. She couldn't allow them to experience the horror again. She promised herself, and she would make sure to turn that promise into a reality.

* * *

 **A/N: I apologize for the delay of the update. I had an interview, and it was a nerve-wracking experience that I wasn't able to post an update for my story. Not only that the interview halted my progress in writing this chapter but I was given a lot of projects and tests. I tried my best into writing this chapter, and I apologize for a short one. I still hope that you find this work satisfying. I had a feeling that I would be in a slump soon and probably get a one month break. Hopefully, it doesn't come to that. I had already written specific future chapters, especially in the S-Class trials. If all goes well, I'll be able to continue writing up to that point of the story line. I want to thank everyone for giving me wonderful reviews and support. I like how the reviews I got are your opinions to my story and my writing. Be sure to fave, follow, and review this chapter.  
**


	9. Chapter 9: The Demon Confined in Ice

"Everyone run!" Lucy shouted as she turned around and ran.

Gray and Natsu ran beside her. Happy was flying using his Aera magic. Behind the team, a large humongous rat was chasing after the Fairy Tail mages. Surprisingly, the creature wore a black corset with pink frills in the edges of the clothing. It wore a white headband, and a red ribbon was tied across its chest.

The team of mages were walking towards the ruins when thundering, loud steps were heard from behind. When the mages looked back, they saw a creature looming over them. It sputtered a foul-smelling gas from its mouth at the mages before they could even react. Smelling the foul stench, they covered their noses, their magic disabled from the current predicament they were in. This situation led the team to run and escape the beast.

"Gray!" Lucy said. "Make the creature slip."

Understanding the plan, Gray turned around, his hands prepared into his casting stance—a closed fist over an open palm. "Ice Make: Floor!"

A blue magic circle appeared as Gray placed his hands on the ground. The ground quickly froze, and the creature was unable to react enough to the different land environment. Losing its sense of balance, it slipped on the cold, hard ground.

"Alright!" Natsu shouted.

Not wasting the opportunity granted, the three mages—a Fire mage, an Ice mage, and a Summoner—attacked the creature with such ferocity, their magic harming it without a tinged of mercy.

"Ice Make: Lance!"

"Gate of the Golden Bull, I open thee, Taurus!"

"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"

Spears of ice shot towards the creature, the Celestial Spirit Taurus slammed his large axe on the creature's stomach, and Natsu's flame-infused punch smashed against the rat's vicious face. The combined counterattack caused the beast to be knocked unconscious on the ground.

"I can understand Natsu and Gray attacking the downed creature without mercy," Happy said, "but you too, Lucy? I guess you don't waste any opportunity no matter how dirty, huh?"

Lucy replied after she thanked Taurus and closing his gate, "Well, it's either we get eaten or we knocked this monster unconscious. Take your pick, Happy."

"When you say it like that Lucy, I'd rather be an alive cat."

"Good to know."

Gray pointed behind Lucy. "There's a building over there. Let's check it out."

Lucy looked to where the Ice mage pointed to see a large temple. She nodded. "That's a good idea."

When the Fairy Tail mages entered the area, they looked around the place.

"It's shabby," Natsu commented.

"I wonder when it was built," Gray muttered.

The temple walls were so old that cracks were all over them, and there were plants growing in the crevices of both the temple walls and floors. A large part of a pillar laid on the floor in front of the mages.

Lucy carefully observed her surroundings. She knelt and touched the floor.

"What are you doing, Lucy?" Happy asked.

"Based on the building's architecture and the plants growing, this temple is at least five hundred years old," Lucy said, answering Gray's question.

"Really?" Gray asked.

"Definitely."

"You're really intelligent. I've seen firsthand how intelligent you are during the Eisenwald incident, but I never expected you to be this smart."

"I had to learn a lot, especially when travelling."

Natsu's voice grabbed both the Celestial Spirit mage and Ice mage's attention. "Look! There are some moon-shaped marks."

As Natsu pointed out, the wall in front of the mages had moon-shaped patterns carved onto it.

"This island was originally called Moon Island." Gray looked at Lucy. "Do you think this is related to the curse?"

Lucy shrugged. "I suppose…"

"It's really shabby… is this floor even sturdy enough?" Natsu asked out loud.

The salmon-haired teen began stomping on the floor with a powerful force. Lucy, realizing the danger, tried to stop Natsu.

"Natsu!" Lucy shouted. "If you continue doing that, the floor will—"

She was too late. Immediately, the floor gave out.

"Natsu, you idiot!" Lucy screamed as she and her team fell down into the pit.

* * *

Lucy opened her eyes. She sat up, and her head swiveled from side to side to look around her surroundings. Apparently, like the previous timeline, she and her team had fell the exact same place.

She stood up, dusted herself of from the dust accumulating around her clothes, and turned around to see one of Zeref's creation, the demon encased in ice—Deliora. Lucy could hear the grumblings from her fellow teammates behind her. She interrupted them before an argument and a fight could break out.

"Guys…" Lucy said, "… look at this."

She didn't have to look at her teammates. She knew that they would have expressions of awe and surprise.

"A humongous frozen monster!" Natsu shouted from surprise.

Indeed, as Natsu exclaimed, a humongous creature—large arms, large scaly hands, and large bird-like feet—was frozen, ice encased around its form. A pair of horns that pointed upwards adorned the beast's forehead. Trembling, Lucy remembered a haunting image from the future—a hundred of Delioras marching towards Magnolia. Their roar resounded throughout the open, vast plains as they let their presence be known.

Lucy was shaken out of her fear from Gray's shaken and fear-filled voice. "Deliora!"

Lucy turned to look at the Ice-make mage. Now wasn't the time to remember events. Her friend was remembering his childhood trauma, and Lucy was needed.

"No way! How can Deliora be here?" Gray continued.

"Deli…" Natsu tried pronouncing the name but failed. "… you know what this is?"

Gray continued his crazed talk. "Impossible! It can't be here!"

"Gray?" Happy questioned.

Before Lucy could speak, she sensed magic nearby. She grabbed Gray's and Natsu's hand and dragged the two mages from behind a large boulder.

"Lucy?" Natsu questioned.

"Be quite… someone's coming," she answered.

The three mages and cat peered over the boulder to see two men walking. One man was shirtless with a dog-like face. Canine ears jutted out from his shoulder-length, straight brown hair. He wore a pair of dark blue pants and a pair of shoes. He was tall, lean, and muscular. The other man, however, was short. His blue hair was spiked upwards. He sported a green coat that reached his knees, covering a part of the black pants that he wore. He also wore a pair of shoes.

"Is it around here that you heard the voice?" the short stranger asked.

"Ooon," the tall man replied as he scratched his bare stomach.

"Daytime… I'm sleepy…" the shorter man stated, "… did you get some moon drip on you? You have ears and stuff."

Instead of the 'Ooon', the tall man angrily replied, "I didn't! It's just decorative! You should know!"

"I'm just teasing you, idiot."

"Ooon."

"Yuka-san, Toby-san, I have sad news," a female voice said.

The two strangers turned around.

"Sherry." The short man acknowledged the approaching woman.

The pink-haired girl named Sherry was dressed in a purple and pink dress with frills on the edges of her short skirt. Black lace crisscrossed on the girl's front. She wore a ribbon-like choker on her neck. She had on black leggings and a pair of high-heeled sandals. Her appearance was gothic.

"Angelica was harassed by someone…" the pink-haired girl said.

"It's just a mouse!" the dog-like man exclaimed.

"She's not just a mouse… Angelica is a hunter that gallops the darkness," she answered, "and love."

"Intruders… eh." The short man said.

"Moonlight would gather soon… but how sad this is…" Sherry said, "… let's get rid of them before Reitei-sama hears about it. Yes… before the moon shows herself…"

The two males nodded in agreement with the girl before they all left the basement cavern. The mages that were hiding left their hiding spot and stood in front of the towering frozen creature.

"Now what? We should've caught them and questions," Natsu said. "It's becoming confusing."

"I wonder what they are," Happy pondered.

"Shit…" Gray said, "… why did they bring Deliora here? I mean, how did they find where Deliora was sealed?"

"Sealed?" Natsu inquisitively looked at his rival.

"Deliora… the Demon of Destruction…" Gray explained, "… it's an immortal demon that penetrated the Isbin area ten years ago. It's a devil that my magic teacher, Ur, sealed at the risk of her life.

"I don't know how it's related to this island's curse… but this isn't something that should be here…" Gray muttered, "… Reitei… what are you? I won't let you get away if you're going to disgrace Ur's name!"

"A devil that your teacher sealed?" Natsu asked.

Gray nodded his head. "The island's curse could possibly Deliora's doing. This devil's still alive anyway."

"All right." Natsu swung his arm in circles. "If that's the case, let me try to finish it off."

Instantly, he was on the ground, his cheek bruised from the Ice-make mage's punch.

"A flame mage can't get any closer," Gray said, his eyes dark. "If the ice melts and Deliora starts moving, no one can stop it."

"Is it something that melts easily?" Natsu shouted.

Gray stopped before he replied a meek 'No'.

Before Natsu could continue, Lucy intervened. "Gray, your teacher used 'Iced shell' didn't she?"

"Iced shell?" Happy tilted his head as he looked at Lucy.

Lucy already knew of the spell. After all, Gray from the previous timeline explained about it. In addition, she read about the spell during the dark days from the future.

"It's a spell that turns the user into ice that cannot be melted even with tremendous flame magic," Lucy explained.

"That's right… why did they even bring it out if they can't melt it?" Gray said.

"No… they can melt it."

Gray looked at Lucy, his eyes filled with anger. "What do you mean they can melt it?"

Lucy sighed as she looked with hardened eyes at Gray. "They mentioned moonlight, Gray. I think I know how they are going to melt it."

"How?"

"Moon Drip, a magic that could break this ice. The moon's magical power has the ability to break any kind of spell. If enough moonlight is gathered in one place… melting this ice is possible."

"Then we have to stop them!" Gray shouted. "They don't know how fearsome Deliora is."

"Then we'll have to wait till the moon is out." Lucy continued before Gray would reply back. "Gray, we don't know any of these people, especially this Reitei. Blindly attacking our enemies won't be an ideal move. For all I know, we're outnumbered."

She saw Gray slumped his shoulders in defeat. He realized the best course of action. Lucy didn't want her teammate to rampage and get himself hurt. She touched his shoulder, trying to cheer up the Ice mage.

"Gray," she said in a soft tone that could only be comforting. She waited for the teen to look at her. When he did, she continued. "You're teacher is an amazing person. She must be proud of you right now." Lucy looked at the ice behind raven-haired teen. "Your teacher is still alive… she's the ice after all."

"… I know…" Gray whispered.

"She must really think of you as her child, then. She sacrificed herself to lock away your darkness after all."

"… I know…"

"She wanted you to find happiness, and you just did. You found it in Fairy Tail."

Gray wrapped his arms around Lucy, trying to find comfort. Lucy squeaked in surprise. She wanted to comfort her friend, but she didn't expect to be hugged by him. She looked at the Dragonslayer and his cat. Natsu had his brow quirked while Happy had his paws on his mouth. Lucy could hear the words Happy wanted to say—'He likes her'. She was sure that the blue cat would purr the words.

When she felt cool liquid dripping on her shoulders, she softly smiled as she gently wrapped her arms around the raven-haired teen. Her friend needed her, and she was there for him.

* * *

After Gray's breakdown, Gray muttered a 'thank you', which Lucy heard. He was fidgeting as if he wanted to say something. Knowing what he wanted to say, Lucy spoke to ease his nervousness. She knew that the Ice mage was embarrassed to reveal his vulnerable side. He wanted to preserve some of his pride and dignity after all.

"We'll keep this a secret, right Happy?" Lucy said, her voice laced with a menacing tone at the blue cat's name.

Fearing the blonde, the blue cat stuttered an 'Aye'.

Natsu was sprawled on the floor, happily sleeping. Lucy sat on a large stone, her mind coming up plans for the upcoming events.

She was thinking about the Phantom Lord Incident. What would she do? Maybe, she could visit her father and stop his plot to attack her guild. Then again, if she did that move, Lucy would lose the chance for the Iron Dragonslayer and the Water mage to join Fairy Tail. Natsu even got stronger after fighting against the Iron Dragonslayer. Should Lucy just let time course itself?

Lucy was getting frustrated. She was getting a headache from thinking about the events. What was she supposed to do?

She had knowledge of the future, yet she didn't know how to use it. She really needed to speak to someone. Sadly, the person she needed wasn't here. Besides, Lucy didn't properly discuss the Lightning Dragonslayer about altering the future. She was too overwhelmed with the burden of saving everyone. Sighing, she decided to talk to him first thing after completing this S-Class job.

For now, she needed to soothe her headache. She took out a silver key. "Gate of the Lyre, I open thee, Lyra!"

A good lullaby would be a great remedy.

* * *

 **A/N: This is another chapter done. I hope you readers enjoyed reading it. I wanted to say that I wouldn't have any time to post a chapter for this month. I have exams in the next two weeks, my graduation is nearing, and I want to spend my time with my friends and family. I hope you could understand my situation. I also appreciate criticism for my writing. I often wondered if Lucy was flawed. I didn't want to make a Mary Sue character. My want to improve myself in forming sentences that bring the words to life is one of my joys in writing. I especially took note of the advice many people often gave me in the reviews, and I'd like to thank all of them. Be sure to fave, follow, and review this chapter.**


	10. Chapter 10: Orders for Victory

Lucy watched with a calculating gaze.

In front of the blonde Celestial Spirit mage, Sherry stood atop piles of large rocks, a tearful expression on her face. She was shouting her obsessive undying love and loyalty to her beloved Reitei-sama, known as Lyon, at Lucy, who didn't even bother listening. The blonde girl was having a headache. She didn't even know what to do with the scarlet mage's arrival, which would occur a few minutes later.

A few hours ago, Lucy and her team were waiting down beside the colossal frozen demon for the right moment. They waited for hours. During the waiting, Lucy indulged herself in her thoughts, which weren't quite pretty. They were mostly negative, and she sought for someone to talk with. Unfortunately, that someone was miles away from this island, doing who knows what. The constant nagging of her negative thoughts drove the blonde girl to summon Lyra, a Celestial Spirit of the Lyre.

Fortunately, the spirit's musical and beautiful voice was able to relieve the blonde's headache. The song continued, its singer accurately hitting the notes. The lovely atmosphere didn't last for long when the building trembled, a hole opened in the ceiling, and moonlight struck the frozen creature. The Fairy Tail mages followed the source of the light to reach on the top of the temple. They saw a ritual being held. A circle of cloaked individuals with moon-shaped marks on their clothing murmured incomprehensible words. A man donning a white cape with fur trimmings over the shoulders walked towards the ritual. The other three strangers previously seen downstairs in the basement cavern greeted the individual.

From that point, Natsu let out a loud battle cry—a declaration of battle. Unlike the previous situation of plummeting to the basement cavern, Lucy didn't try to stop the Fire Dragonslayer. Words were exchanged, spells were exchanged, but the feelings weren't sent across.

With Happy carrying Lucy back to the village, the two were able to reach it. Lucy would then explain the summary of the investigation to the villagers. Afterwards, Natsu, who was frozen except for the head and limbs, came back with an unconscious and injured Gray to the village. Lucy would then say to Natsu, "You can probably break the ice. Since you're away from the user, the magic should probably weaken."

Natsu did what she told him to do—he broke free from the ice. He and Happy were about to dance in victory until one of the villagers pointed to the night sky. Carrying a large bucket, the humongous rat from before flew in the night sky. It tilted the bucket, and green acidic substance poured out.

Lucy immediately shouted out orders. Everyone gathered in the middle of the village as Happy carried Natsu towards the green acid falling to the village. The Fire Dragonslayer managed to create a powerful explosion to scatter the acidic substance away from the middle of the village where the villagers were huddled together. Another set of words were exchanged, and Lucy grabbed on to the flying once it flew passed her and her team.

Now, she was on the ground, inattentively listening to the pink-haired girl's rants as she listed her options to deal with the situation.

"I won't forgive you!" Sherry shouted as she held out an open palm. "Wood Doll!"

The nearby tree moved. Three holes appeared on the tree's trunk. Two circular dotted holes for the eyes and a mouth. Two large branches and roots became the creature's hands and legs. The tree monster swung its arm at the blonde Celestial Spirit mage.

Lucy dodged by rolling to the side. The slam of the Wood Doll's attack was enough to create a small crater. When Lucy was in a kneeling position, she took out a golden key, "Gate of the Golden Bull, I open thee, Taurus!"

A golden magic circle, and a spirit came out from the ground. "Mooo!" the cow spirit said as he swung his large axe against the tree creature, cutting it down.

"Celestial Spirit Magic? On top of that, the Ecliptic Zodiac?" Sherry said.

"Mooo!" Taurus shouted as he raised up his axe. "Lucy-san's tits are the best!"

Sherry had a disgusted expression on her face. "Making a Celestial Spirit say that and even enjoying it; that's highly indecent…"

"I didn't make him say that!" Lucy retorted.

"But…" the pink-haired girl continued, "… Celestial Spirit mages are unfortunate to meet me…"

Knowing what would happen, Lucy closed her spirit's gate. "Taurus! Force Closure!"

"Wha—"

"I'm not letting you take control of my friend."

"It seems like you knew what my magic is. You can even close the gate without your spirit's consent."

"That's right. 'Doll Play Attack' is your magic—the magic to control anything but humans."

"Even if you know what my magic is, your Celestial Spirits don't work on me."

"Who said that I always use my Celestial Spirits?" Lucy took out her whip, which was on her hip. "I'll just use my whip."

Sherry smirked. She held out her two hands as if controlling an imaginary puppet. "Can your whip break rocks then?"

The pile of rocks that she stood on started moving around her. Then, a humanoid rock golem was in front of Lucy.

"Doll Play Attack: Rock Doll!"

Lucy didn't waste time to run away. She headed towards the direction to where she would actually meet with the red-haired knight. Lucy jumped and swung her arm, the whip moving along and coiling around a branch of a tall tree. She swung across the air, covering more ground. Using her leather whip, the blonde continued a series of swinging from one branch of tree to another.

She didn't even look back, her eyes looking forwards. Once Lucy saw the brilliant view of the shore—the brilliant night, scattered stars, and the gentle waves—she took out a golden key. "Gate of the Maiden, I open thee, Virgo!"

The maid spirit stood beside her master. "Hime."

"Virgo, we don't have much time. Could you go underground? Dig deep enough that the ground would collapse once pressure is added."

"Very well." The spirit dove to the ground.

Hearing the loud tremors, Lucy looked back to the direction that she last saw the Doll Attack user. She gripped her whip. She was ready.

Lucy could easily beat her opponent by summoning two Celestial Spirits, but by doing so, Lucy would risk garnering attention to herself. Others perceived the blonde as a weak mage. That false perception could grant her a good opportunity against powerful opponents. Another reason for limiting her abilities was her unique magic. No one knew that a Celestial Spirit mage could incorporate the powers of a Celestial Spirit. If Lucy showed this unique ability, many problems would arise.

When the figure of the rock golem emerged from the darkness of the jungle, Lucy pulled back her arm, readying for the swing.

"Ready to get squashed in the name of love?" Sherry asked as her golem slowly neared the blonde.

The rock golem took another step, and the sand beneath him collapsed. The golem sank on the ground. It was at least twenty-five feet underground, the head being the only part aboveground.

"This is—" the pink-haired girl couldn't finish her sentence because her mouth was constricted by a leather rope.

"I don't think I will." Lucy pulled the grip on her whip, pulling her opponent towards her. She raised her leg and delivered a swift kick on the girl's head, knocking out Sherry.

Lucy looked at her unconscious opponent, who was lying down with her face on the sand. Hopefully, Lucy didn't have to deal with the humongous rat again.

She turned around to go back to the village, but something stopped her.

Sword pointed at the blonde's neck, the scarlet-haired knight demanded, "Where are the others?"

* * *

Convincing Erza Scarlet was a difficult task. She was stubborn like everyone in the guild, but there was one fact that was difficult to convince her other than her stubbornness, which she somehow inherited in Fairy Tail—her devotion to rules.

Her strict character emphasized abidance to follow rules and regulations. However, her existence was an irony. Despite following rules and regulations, Erza had broken some of the regulations, mainly destroying private and public property. Then again, she was Titania of Fairy Tail, the Queen of Fairies. She was not controlled by rules. She controlled the rules.

The team except for Natsu was inside a tent. Unlike the previous timeline, Lucy and Happy weren't bound by ropes, and Gray was already awake once reaching the village.

"I'll do what I want till the end," Gray said as he let go of the blade that Erza pointed at his neck. "Cut me down if you want." He then turned around and walked out of the tent.

Erza glared at the place where the Ice mage stood on. She gritted her teeth.

Before Erza would consume herself in her rage and rush after the raven-haired teen, Lucy stepped in front of her. Happy was, at this point, shaken and paralyzed from fear.

"Erza," Lucy started, "I know we did the wrong thing by stealing an S-Class job request… I will honestly say that I did this for the Golden key, but I'm doing this now for Gray."

When Lucy saw no movement, she continued, "He saw his childhood trauma in this island, Erza. I'd like to help him get a proper closure."

Once Lucy said her words, she left the tent. She didn't have to wait for her friend's response. Lucy already knew. Titania would always take care of her people.

* * *

The roar was deafening. It gave Lucy a chill. Her skin was turning cold as time passed. Lucy internally groaned. Why did her intuition have to predict a bad omen?

She, along with Erza and Happy, was fighting against the followers of Lyon until a loud roar resounded throughout the island. Sometimes, Lucy wanted to curse her existence. Apparently, through her fierce battles from the future, she developed a keen intuition that never seemed to be wrong when a danger was imminent. Currently, this intuition of hers was telling the blonde Celestial Spirit mage that there would be something different in this timeline, and she had an idea about the difference.

"Erza, Happy, we have to go!" Lucy shouted as she ran towards the source of the roar. She was hoping that her idea wouldn't come to fruition.

Once Lucy, Erza, and Happy reached where the frozen Deliora was supposedly residing, they saw an atrocious scenario playing in front of their eyes. The demon of destruction stood up, its red eyes gleamed with evil malice.

"This is bad," Lucy said. "I miscalculated."

"What do you mean, Lucy?" Erza asked.

"Deliora was hit by iced shell—a spell that turns the user into ice and freeze the target in ice. It's a powerful technique," Lucy answered, her eyes not leaving the demon in front of her, "but because the ice itself is made from the spirit and body of the caster, the target should gradually weaken as time passes."

"What did you just say?" a voice said.

Lucy and Erza turned their heads to see an injured Lyon on the ground. He had multiple cuts and bruises on his body. His shirt was bloody and torn. His face was covered in crimson blood.

"What did you just say?" Lyon asked again. "Are you saying that Deliora… doesn't have the same strength as before?"

Lucy looked at the white-haired Ice mage, pity evident on her eyes. "Yes. In fact, once you freed Deliora, it should have corroded, but…" she looked at the demon. "… I am clearly wrong."

"Is there a way to defeat it, Lucy?" Happy asked.

Before Lucy could respond, an explosion occurred on the demon's head.

Boom!

"Take this, Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flames!" the Fire Dragonslayer's voice echoed across the cavern.

Natsu's shout was followed by Gray's.

"Ice Make: Lance!"

A large explosion and a torrent of icy spears attacked Deliora's face.

"Those idiots…" Erza muttered.

She immediately changed armor. She now donned her Heaven's Wheel Armor—a long plated skirt, a plated armor for the chest, and large metal wings on her back. A sword was held on each hand. Erza raised one sword above her and summoned countless blades.

"Dance, my blades," she said as she charged towards the demon.

Lucy took out one of her keys. "Gate of the Crab, I open thee, Cancer!"

Cancer was standing beside the blonde. Lucy cut him off when he was about to say his catchphrase. "Cancer, please take Lyon away to a safe place."

"What! No! I will not leave!" Lyon protested.

"Shut up!" Lucy glared at the teen. "You will be taken to a safe place. Your injuries will worsen, and you'll just be a in the way if you stay here." She looked back to her spirit. "Cancer, please."

Following his master's wishes, Cancer carried a struggling Lyon and left the battle. Lucy readied her whip.

She observed the battle carefully. Despite weakened by Iced Shell, Deliora was still strong enough to obliterate an island. Lucy would have to order her teammates around if she wanted to end this battle quickly before more casualties rose.

Her mind was formulating strategies and imaginary battle simulations against Deliora. She would mutter a 'No' or a 'Too many risks'. Happy was floating in the air beside her.

"Lucy?" he called out.

The blonde would ignore him. She had to think of a plan, and a distractions were just in the way. The Fairy Tactician was needed right now.

She was continuing to mutter until she reached the best solution. She faced Happy. "Go to Natsu."

Happy grinned and shouted an 'Aye' before going to his partner.

Lucy yelled out with a loud voice. "I have a plan!"

She didn't wait for the three mages to look in her way. She knew her teammates enough. They were listening.

"Gray, freeze Deliora's mouth! We can't let him shoot a magic beam. Erza, the legs!" Lucy relayed orders.

Gray was running. He jumped to a higher ground, using his magic to create stepping platforms. Once he was high enough, he jumped towards Deliora's head. He grabbed one of the horns protruding from the demon's forehead and used it to swing himself towards the mouth. He touched the demon's jaw. Instantly, the jaw, along with the mouth, was frozen in ice.

Erza commanded her swords to attack the legs. With such ferocity, she stabbed and slashed, and she didn't relent until Deliora's knees buckled. She didn't stop her attacks until Deliora was on his knees. After receiving so much damage, the legs quivered and fell on the ground, the loud thud reverberated in the cavern. Deliora was brought on its knees. Smoke and dust scattered all over the room, and the large pool of water that was melted ice from Ur's Iced Shell splashed upwards from the force of a demon's legs hitting ground. Deliora was hunched over, its large hands pressing on the ground for support.

"Attack its spine, Natsu!" Lucy yelled.

With the fastest speed, Happy carried Natsu and dove to the demon's spine. When Happy was near the demon, he let go of the Fire Dragonslayer, who was covered in flames.

"Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!" Natsu attacked the creature's spine, piercing through.

The demon's head shot its head upwards as if screaming out its dying breathe before finally collapsing on the ground.

Lucy grinned. Her teammates won. They were slightly stronger than they were from the previous timeline. Maybe, defeating Zeref wouldn't be impossible after all.

Lucy got a step forward to her goal. She still had a long way to reach it.

* * *

 **A/N: I hoped you readers enjoyed this chapter. I had told you readers about my situation from the previous chapter. I wrote this long chapter, which I think is long, to compensate for the lack of activity for the following weeks. I will edit the chapters sometime in the future, especially this one. Still, I cannot believe that I wrote ten chapters. I thought that I would give up on writing this work, but I didn't. Usually, when I write a story, I lose my drive to continue writing it. I'd like to thank you for the reviews I get from all of you readers. Despite having such a few reviews for every chapter I post, those reviews helped me to continue writing and improving myself. In fact, I was able to complete this chapter in less than two days, and it's 2500 words and more. I am considering to have a beta reader for this work, but I think the reviews you readers supply are efficient enough. Be sure to fave, follow, and review this chapter.**


	11. Chapter 11: A Different Savior

The guild was destroyed.

Lucy walked back with her Nikora spirit, Plue, beside her.

"Phantom Lord," Lucy muttered.

After the S-Class job, which was a stolen request, Lucy and her team went back home. Of course, they finished the job by doing as the chief of the village asked: destroying the moon. Lucy accepted the request after asking the villagers questions such as "Why haven't you guys investigated the temple?" and "You got that appearance three years ago, right?"

They reluctantly told her the answers she needed. When Lucy was asking questions, she saw Erza wearing a knowing expression. Gray was even freaking out about Lucy, whom he thought was the sanest in his guild, accepting such a ridiculous request.

Lucy asked Erza's and Natsu's abilities to destroy the moon. Knowing the blonde's plan, Erza immediately wore her Giant Armor, a golden armor with a barbaric appearance that increases the user's throwing strength. She had golden animal-like ears as a helm. Blue ornamental stripes adorned the armor pieces.

The plan was simple. Lucy explained that once Erza throws her spear Natsu will boost it with a flame-infused punch on its back. Natsu's explosive power would help the spear reach the purple moon. Gray was even skeptical of the idea.

The plan was set to motion. Erza threw the spear, Natsu punched it from behind, and it took off to the sky. Gray was flabbergasted when he saw the moon cracked.

The moon didn't shatter though. The cracks on the moon continued to the sky until they shattered, revealing the silver moon. Questions were exchanged until Lucy gave her explanation.

"Since moon drip has been going on for three years, the exhaust fumes caused by the spell gathered in the sky and crystallized, creating a layer. That's why the moon was purple. Of course, this layer isn't even harmful to humans. In fact, it only affects demons, which the villagers are supposed to be. Fortunately, this only affects their memories. They being demons cannot enter holy places such as the temple, for instance."

The job was done, and the reward money wasn't accepted. The team only took the additional reward, the golden key, after Lucy convinced her scarlet-haired friend to take it.

Returning back home, Lucy knew the next event to happen. She and her team got back to Magnolia to see their destroyed guild with large iron poles piercing through the building. Angered and hurt, her team along with the rest of the guild wanted to retaliate against the people who harmed their home. The master of Fairy Tail, however, ordered them to stand down.

Lucy looked at her little companion beside her. "What do you think will happen in the future, Plue?"

Her companion replied with his usual 'Puu-puun!'

Lucy smiled. She grabbed Plue and hugged him against her chest. "Everything will be fine, right?"

"Puu-puun!" Plue said.

Lucy chuckled as she walked across the bridge. She stopped when she felt drops of rain falling from the sky. She looked up at the gray sky.

"It wasn't supposed to rain…" Lucy whispered.

Her eyes widened as realization hit her. Lucy turned around. She was about to grab one of her keys until a sphere of water trapped her. The keys dropped on the cobblestoned ground. Plue faded away with a shimmering light.

Lucy didn't realize how much the future can be altered. The confrontation with the water mage was too early. Lucy saw a figure in front of her, but she couldn't see the person clearly due to the water. Still, Lucy knew who was in front of her.

"Do not worry. Juvia will not kill you, for it is Juvia's duty to bring you back, Lucy Heartfilia-sama," the figure said.

Lucy thought of Natsu. She stopped struggling, knowing that he would save her.

Her vision blurred, her consciousness slowly fading. She moved her lips, muttering a prayer.

"Please save me again, Natsu…"

* * *

Natsu was bored. With his arms crossed in front of his chest, he sat on the floor cross-legged. He screamed and then laid his back on the wooden floor. Happy was on the table, munching on a fish.

"Natsu, what are you doing?" Happy asked after swallowing his food.

"Happy! I'm bored!" the teen replied. "You're bored too, right?"

Happy nodded at his statement.

"Let's go to Lucy's place," he said.

Immediately, Happy stood up and flew around the air. "Aye sir!"

Along the way, Natsu and Happy met Gray and Erza. Coincidentally, all of them had the same idea of visiting Lucy's place.

"Honestly, why the hell do I have to see your face again…?" Gray said.

"Shut it, Ice Princess. I don't even want to see your ugly face anyway," Natsu replied.

"What did you just call me, Flame Brain?"

"Huh? You wanna fight." Natsu raised his fists and imbued them with flames.

Gray was in his magic stance. "Bring it!"

Before the two would engage in combat, a woman's voice stopped them. "Enough!"

The two froze and began to hug each other. They didn't want to face the wrath of Titania, whom they cannot defeat. The consequences of angering the scarlet-haired female was not to be taken lightly.

"Yes!" both Gray and Natsu exclaimed.

"I expect more from you two. We are going to Lucy's apartment immediately, so no fighting, am I understood?" Erza said, her voice menacing as she emphasized the word 'understood'.

The two boys couldn't voice out their words of agreement because of fear. Instead, they nodded, knowing a punishment was upon them if they didn't give any sign of agreement.

Erza shook her head. She then passed by the boys, who later followed after her to Lucy's apartment.

Natsu sighed. He was hoping to be alone with the Celestial Spirit Wizard. He wanted to hang out with her. He was so curious about her. She was smart, fun, and strong. Her weird magic was even interesting. Natsu wanted to know his friend a bit more. When he first met Lucy, she gave an impression of being protected, but he was wrong. For the past few days, he found out so many sides of her.

Sometimes, he would often see her mind wander. Her eyes would have that dull gleam as if watching a sad scenario. Natsu knew that his friend was reliving sad memories. Everyone in Fairy Tail had a sad past. Natsu never imagined the cheerful Lucy to have one as well. Then again, Fairy Tail had the knack of adopting stray people carrying dark pasts.

Natsu would wait. He had a lot of time to know about his friend. He would wait for her to tell her tale, her burden, and her pain to him.

He was brought out of his thoughts when a smell of iron hit his sensitive nose. "This is…"

He turned his head to the direction of the scent. With his keen eyes, he saw people gathered around the Southern Entrance Park.

"Guys… there are people gathered over there." Natsu pointed at the direction.

"Hmm… we don't have time for any detour," Erza said, "but seeing a crowd gathered over there piqued my interest. Let's go."

The two males and cat followed the scarlet-haired mage.

As they neared the crowd, they saw what garnered the attention. In front of them, team Shadow Gear that consisted of Jet, Droy, and Levy was nailed on a large tree. Levy had an insignia of Phantom Lord etched on her stomach.

The image made Natsu's blood boiled. Natsu couldn't hear anything except the thumping of his heart. He didn't realize that his flames covered his skin. His flames flared, expressing the emotion he felt. Natsu gritted his teeth, his eyes glaring at the obscene and wretched insignia marked on Levy's stomach.

Natsu was furious.

* * *

Lucy woke up in a familiar place. She was in a barren room. The walls and floor were made from concrete stones. Rubbles could be seen here and there. In front of the blonde girl, there was an iron door. It had a small window with iron bars. Lucy knew that she was captured by Phantom Lord.

She turned her head to look behind her. The rope tightly tied her wrists. The fiber vehemently rubbing against her skin, possibly marring it.

"My wrists would definitely have marks for a few days," Lucy whispered.

"Are you awake, Lucy Heartfilia-sama?" a voice said.

The iron door opened, and it revealed a tall, slim man with straight, black hair that reached his shoulders. He wore a hat that clearly resemble from those worn by fictional sorcerers from fairy tales, a coat with bat wings over a simple shirt adorned with a red ribbon that had the Wizard Saint medallion pinned, a pair of baggy striped pants, and a pair of pointed shoes.

"I'm Phantom Lord's master, Jose. I apologize for tying you up and putting you in this filthy jail…" the man said, "… but you're still a captive. Please try to understand."

Lucy utter a word.

"That's a nice behavior," the man commented. "If you keep that up, we might treat you as a 'VIP' instead of a captive."

"Who sent you to attack my guild?" Lucy asked.

She already knew who sent them, but precautions were necessary, especially when altering the future.

"Our true objective was to get hold of a certain individual," Jose continued. "That certain individual happened to belong to Fairy Tail, so we thought why not kill two birds with one stone."

"That certain individual is me," Lucy stated.

"Of course," Phantom Lord's master said. "As expected of the daughter of the Heartfilia Family, Lucy Heartfilia-sama."

"So my father requested for you."

"Correct again."

Lucy let out a sigh, showing reluctant compliance. "I see…"

"I didn't think for you to let yourself get captured so willingly."

"I have no ways of defeating you. My keys are not even with me, so chances of an escape are limited."

"Smart girl…"

"Since I've been in my best behavior, would you mind showing directing me where the bathroom is?"

The man laughed. "That's a classic excuse you know. You're a smart woman, you should have been able to come up with something original."

"I really meant the bathroom excuse."

"Very well." Master Jose placed a rusty bucket beside Lucy. "Go ahead."

Lucy stood up and walked to the bucket. "Beggars can't be choosers, huh?"

"You're actually going to do it?" the man shouted before he turned to look away, exposing his back to the now grinning girl.

Lucy didn't expect for the same tactic to work. Then again, she was back in the past. The man in front of her wouldn't even know about the plan. Lucy was actually anticipating to harm the man. She wanted to hit him for the destruction and pain he would bring upon her guild. She lifted her behind and swung her leg, hitting the man's precious jewels.

The man crumpled to the floor, his hands placed on the part between his knees. He groaned loudly from the pain.

"The classic excuse can be effective if you put a twist in it," Lucy said as she walked towards the exit.

She stopped. Looking down, she saw the ground a hundred meters or possibly more away from her.

"Pity, isn't it…" the man crumpled on the ground behind her said, "… this is our sky prison…"

Lucy spun around to face the Master of Phantom Lord. She gave him a smile. "I'm not going back."

Lucy closed her eyes. She knew that she will be saved once she falls. She trusted her Fire Dragonslayer, whom she fell in love, to save her once more.

She leaned back as the wind brushed her hair to the side, and she fell. She heard the man yell out an indignant and strangled cry of 'What!'

The sense of falling was nothing new to Lucy. When she fell, her hair would be pushed upwards from the air pushing against her. Quickly and rapidly, her heart would thud against her chest. Lucy would usually scream out before being caught by safety arms. Memories of her life would flash on her mind before her body splattered on the cold, hard ground.

Now, she neither screamed out nor conjured memories in her mind. Her heart beat at a steady rhythm. Lucy had a smile on her.

Her smile only got wider when she felt arms under her back and legs, and the sensation of vertigo stopped. She opened her mouth to speak out the words.

"Thank you, Na…" the words stopped. They wouldn't come out of her mouth as she stared at her savior, confusion and hurt evident on her face.

"Lucy, are you alright?" he questioned, his grey eyes held concern.

Her savior wasn't Natsu. It was Laxus.

Lucy almost got herself killed.

* * *

 **A/N: Hello readers. A new chapter has been posted. I've been writing during my breaks from studying. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter. I had been ecstatic to know that my story is liked by many. I hope I will be able to meet your expectations for future chapters. I'd like for you to share your opinions about this chapter, especially the end. Then again, the title must have been a giveaway. I'd been reading many Fairy Tail fanfics, and the 'Lucy being kicked out of the guild' concept seems to be abundant. Because of that overused idea, I motivated myself to write this work, which I hoped was something different and unique. I also have a question to you readers. Did Laxus even call Lucy 'Blondie'? Was that naming even canon? From my knowledge, Lucy was always called 'Princess' by her celestial spirits and 'Blondie' by Flare. I appreciate the answers given. My exams will start in a few days, so I apologize once more for the temporary break in this work. I hope that you readers would still consider reading this work by the time I post a new chapter.** **Be sure to fave, follow, and review this chapter.**


	12. Chapter 12: Reason and Emotion

Laxus didn't know what happened.

At first, the girl on her arms was smiling. Then, when she opened her eyes, the smile fell off her face, and tears suddenly shed from the corners of her eyes. Her body convulsed, and her breathing quickened. Laxus saw Lucy's eyes. The girl was so terrified that she was having a panic attack.

Laxus immediately set the girl down on the ground. He put her against a rock.

"Breathe Lucy," Laxus whispered on the girl's ear, placing a hand on the girl's shoulder. "Inhale for five seconds alright."

The girl inhaled.

"Good. Hold that for a few more seconds, and then you exhale for another five seconds," Laxus continued. The girl did as he instructed. "Repeat the process until you can breathe normally."

Laxus observed the girl repeat the procedure countless of times. He watched her inhale oxygen, hold her breathe, and release carbon dioxide. Her breathing slowly steadied as time passed.

"… Laxus… thank you…" Lucy whispered when she was finally able to breathe properly.

"It's okay. Are you really alright?" Laxus asked.

Lucy gripped on his coat. "He didn't come…"

"Lucy?"

Laxus didn't know what the blonde girl was talking about. Was she expecting someone else?

"… He didn't come… he didn't come for me…" Lucy leaned her forehead against Laxus's chest. "Why? Why didn't Natsu come?"

Realization hit Laxus. Natsu saved Lucy when she was captured. Laxus didn't know the reason, but hearing the blonde girl say those words insulted Laxus. Was she thinking that Natsu would save her again? Did he save her by catching her as she plummets to her death? Why did she even think that Natsu would save her again? Was Laxus not enough?

"Lucy… you're an idiot," Laxus said. "Just because we're back in the past doesn't necessarily mean that everything will be the same. You shouldn't put your faith in him."

Lucy looked at him, anger on her face. "Natsu would definitely come! He always has. He had caught me before, and he would have caught me again!"

"Yet I'm the one who caught you."

"He would have come a bit later."

"Lucy, he would have come by now, but he didn't," Laxus reasoned. "You should realize it already. The Natsu here isn't your Natsu."

Laxus knew that his words were cold, but Lucy needed to hear those. She was an emotionally strong woman. She could accept this cold, hard reality. If she didn't accept it sooner, more problems would arise, and the same mistakes could transpire. The chance to alter the future would be a waste.

Stubborn to realize the truth, Lucy threw a punch at older blonde's chest. It didn't even faze Laxus. Lucy continued to punch his chest, releasing all the emotions she felt—her anger, her sadness, and her fear. Laxus let the girl hit his chest. She needed to do this.

"He would have come… he would have come… he's Natsu… he's my best friend…" she said, her punches gradually weakening, "… he's everything to me… he gave me lovely adventures and friends… he couldn't just leave me…"

"He's not the Natsu that you know. Maybe, he'll be one someday. Right now, he isn't, Lucy," Laxus said, trying to comfort the girl.

Lucy didn't speak. Her sobs and sniffles were the replies. She stopped hitting the Lightning Dragonslayer's chest and wrapped her arms around him, needing comfort. Laxus responded by hugging back.

"It's okay, Lucy." Laxus whispered on her ear.

"It's… not… okay at… all," Lucy replied, her sobs cutting off her sentence. "I almost… left you alone… Laxus…"

Laxus smiled at the thoughtfulness. "Let's go home. Can you stand?"

Lucy nodded.

* * *

As the two blondes walked back to the guild, they decided to talk over their mission along the way.

"Laxus… we have to discuss our plan," Lucy said.

Laxus nodded. "I've been destroying Dark Guilds… with the Thunder God Tribe."

Lucy looked at him. "That's a simple and straightforward plan. Wouldn't the Thunder God Tribe be in the way?"

"I figured removing potential enemies earlier would help in changing the future. I can't tell them to leave me alone. They would get suspicious."

"You may be right, but you could have done a spectacular speech about taking over the guild." Lucy slightly tilted her chin upwards and said with a deep voice, trying to mimic the Lighting Dragonslayer's arrogant attitude. "I notice how those damn weaklings have been ruining Fairy Tail's reputation. Why don't we go destroy as many Dark Guilds as we can to fix that problem?"

Laxus quirked a brow at her. "I don't sound like that, and why would I even propose to take down Dark Guilds to fix Fairy Tail's reputation? They'll think that I am doing this for the guild and the 'weaklings' as Jackass Laxus would say."

"Your group wouldn't question your reasoning as long as you use your arrogant attitude."

"Of course they will, especially Freed. God knows how he will do it, but I'm sure he will find out."

"He's probably watching, twenty-four seven…" She paused for a bit, "… they didn't follow you, did they?"

"I managed to escape them for now. What's your plan?"

She let out a sigh. "To make Natsu stronger…"

"I remember you saying something along those lines… but how?" Laxus asked.

She crossed her arms, her breast being more prominent from the action. "I was hoping to get all the difficult quests while I'm with him. I always took the easier ones before. I don't think those will help, though."

Laxus subtly looked away from Lucy. "Why don't you tell him to train with you?"

If Lucy convince Natsu to train, then problems in the future would be easier to handle, so why didn't she do that?

"I have three reasons. First, I'm not that close to him… I don't think I'll be able to convince him to train." She stared at the ground, her eyes dulled for a moment before reverting back to their normal shine. "Second, there has been a lot going on when I got here. Everything has been in total chaos. The events are still happening, but there's something different for each scenario."

"You mean Natsu's nonexistent arrival?" Laxus said, his voice having that rough edge.

"T-that... but also," Lucy said, "the enemies I have fought against."

"Explain."

"In the previous timeline, Lullaby was easily defeated by Natsu and the others, and Deliora was already dead. In this timeline, Lullaby took a longer time to defeat, and Deliora was still alive."

"What do you think so far?"

"Right now, I honestly don't know. There are so many discrepancies between the previous timeline and this one. The only thing I could make sense is that both main discrepancies relates to the demons of Zeref, Lullaby and Deliora."

"… Is it Zeref's doing?"

Lucy stopped walking, prompting Laxus to do the same. She clenched her fists. "I don't know," she said. "It frustrates me, but I don't know…"

Laxus sighed. "What about your third reason?"

"I can't completely change everything. Doing so would destroy the events that could lead up to the final battle with Zeref. We won't be able to predict how the future will play its course. In fact, we could potentially eliminate any possible alliances with our future friends…"

"Good idea."

"By the way, how did you know I was captured?" Her eyes narrowed in realization. "You couldn't have..."

"I was taking tabs on what happened. I wanted to change some things…"

Lucy glared at him. "Laxus! You shouldn't have done that. You would have drastically change the events, and we wouldn't be able to predict what will happen."

"I wanted to change things…" Laxus said, "… I didn't want to let the guild see the cruel jerk from the Fantasia incident…"

Lucy stared at him and understood his intentions. Laxus regretted his actions in the previous timeline. To him, going back to the past was a method for redemption. However, if Laxus did those major changes, there would be a risk of unpredictability for the future events. The possibility could range from not being able to recruit future guild members such as Gajeel to not making a certain event happen such as going to Earthland's mirror world, Edolas.

"I… I understand what you're saying, Laxus..." Lucy said, "… but if you do that… the future will—"

"Are you suggesting that I hurt the guild again, Lucy?"

Lucy was stunned by the question; however, her mind soon acted up, constructing an answer. Before she knew what she was doing, her mouth moved, automatically spewing the answer that her mind planned.

"Yes, I would. Natsu always get stronger for every enemy that he fights against in the previous timeline. By reenacting the battles, the Natsu of this timeline can—"

"Stop."

Eyes widened from surprise, Lucy brought her hand to her lips. She didn't mean to say those words. She knew the logic behind her reasoning was sound, but the words were sharp, calculating, and cold. No emotion coated the words. What had become of her? When was she this heartless to suggest such a plan?

Lucy tried to apologize. Her mouth opened, but her throat wouldn't let out a sound. Apparently, Lucy was still shock by the words that came from her lips. She needed to apologize, but the damage was done. An apology wouldn't fix the damage that she caused in Laxus's heart.

"Laxus, I didn't mean what I said. I-I didn't mean any of it. Laxus, I'm…"

"Save it. You meant what you said." Laxus looked at Lucy and gave her a somber smile. "You're doing this for everyone. I understand. Let's just go."

Returning his attention to the path, Laxus continued his trek to the guild. Lucy froze on her spot, staring at the muscular back of the Lightning Dragonslayer. She clenched her jaw.

"I'm the worst," Lucy whispered.

She just wanted everyone to be safe. A possible future that everyone would be able to live a carefree and peaceful life, yet she planned on using her friend to harm his love ones. Laxus had comforted her, and she repaid his kindness with a cruel response to his question.

"I'm the worst…" Lucy repeated.

* * *

Mirajane was anxious. Master Makarov was incapacitated from the lack of magic power, everyone in the guild was tensed, and Lucy was missing. In addition, Mirajane was trying to contact Laxus for help via communication lacrima, but Freed always received the calls and replied with a "Laxus does not need to be burdened with such frivolities."

She was now walking around the guild, looking at her other guild mates. Max and Warren were discussing a plan to ambush Phantom Lord. Natsu and Gray were sitting quietly on their chairs. They didn't even bicker with each other. Others members sat quietly as well. Some were tending to their wounds from the previous battle.

Mirajane had never felt so useless in her life. She wanted to help protect the guild. It was her and her brother's only home. Mirajane even wished to get her magic power back, so she could fight with her guild. She was broken out of her thoughts from the sound of opening doors.

Surprise on her face, Mirajane stared at the two people standing at the guild entrance. "Lucy and Laxus!"

Questions bombarded Mira's mind. Where Lucy had gone? Why was Laxus here after so many failed attempts of contact? Why were the two blondes together?

Mirajane found out the answers to those questions soon. Lucy stood in the middle of the guild and told her tale. She told them her past from being a runaway heiress from a wealthy family to her kidnapping a few hours ago. Mirajane stared at her blonde friend, who wanted to live her own life and write her own fate, before staring at the blonde man listening to his sound pods. Mirajane was really curious about the relationship between the two blondes. For the past few years, she knew Laxus to be arrogant, selfish, and self-centered. However, her knowledge about him went down the drain. The present Laxus was caring, protective, and empathetic. Mirajane was seeing a different Laxus.

During his stay in the guild, she noticed how he would subtly help the guild around. Levy was looking for her book, and when she wasn't looking, Laxus quietly placed the book on the table beside the short girl before leaving. No one but Mirajane noticed this act of kindness. When Happy was hungry, Laxus would order a fish dish and leave it on the counter. The blue cat would just snatch the food away. Laxus didn't even mind.

Mirajane was searching for a reason towards Laxus's change. She knew that it didn't happen overnight. If she had to estimate when the change occurred, she would think a few weeks before Lucy's arrival. Her mind remembered Lucy's and Laxus's first meeting in the guild. Mirajane remembered Lucy telling her story of being attacked by bandits until Laxus saved her. Could the change be caused by Lucy?

Mirajane saw Laxus glancing at Lucy, and Mirajane saw the emotion in his eyes. She knew that look. After being a barmaid in the guild, Mirajane learned how to read a person's body language from handling customers. She could see the desire to protect and comfort in Laxus's eyes. She didn't think of the possibility of such a thing.

After this incident was over, Mirajane would have some girl talk with Lucy.

Mirajane would definitely hook those two blondes together.

* * *

 **A/N: Hello readers. I'm done with my exams. I hope that you enjoyed this chapter, which was totally meant to touch the heart with drama. I apologize if the method to stop a panic attack isn't correct. I had never experienced one, so I had to search the Internet. I also apologize that the chapter is mostly dialogue, and I like to know your opinion about it. I predict that everyone will start to hate Lucy in this chapter. After all, she told Laxus to redo the Fantasia incident, but she wanted to save everyone. She was experiencing an inner conflict with her logic and emotion. I was thinking of writing another work, but it will focus mostly on Lucy and Cobra, also known as Erik. I am still planning on the idea; however, you are free to tell me what you expect. Do you expect another time travel fiction or a completely different idea? If I am going to post a work about these two characters, the updates for that work would be slower because of 'A New Tomorrow'. I had a feeling that writing two works at the same rate will be difficult for me. Be sure to fave, follow, and review this chapter.**


	13. Chapter 13: Matters of the Heart

Lucy was walking around the streets of Magnolia. The fight against Phantom Lord ended a week ago.

When Lucy and Laxus had come back, Lucy told her story of being a runaway heiress to the rest of the guild. She explained that her mother's death changed her kind father into a cruel man who view his daughter as a tool to gain more wealth. She even told them that this war between the two guilds was caused by her father who hired Phantom Guild to retrieve her. Once she was done, she waited for the response. She didn't know how they would react. She was scared of being shun away.

Her fears vanished when Natsu had walked towards Lucy. He came and told her the same speech as the Natsu in the previous timeline. "Is that so? I mean, the term 'Lady' doesn't really suit you, does it? You fit better in this dirty bar, laughing and merrily going out on adventures. You said you want to stay here. What good would it do for you to return to a place you hate? You're Lucy from Fairy Tail, right? This is your home."

Lucy had given the Fire Dragonslayer a smile. The Natsu of this timeline was still the same as her Natsu from the previous timeline. One day, when all of this was over, Lucy would confess her feelings for him. She never had a chance to confess to him about her feelings in the previous timeline, but she got a second chance.

Her mind drifted to Laxus. She still remembered the hurtful expression on his face. For the past week, the two blondes had been ignoring each other. There were times that they would be forced to converse with one another. One of such instances was being tripped over a foot to fall on top the Lightning Dragonslayer. Another embarrassing occurrence was seeing the Lightning Dragonslayer shirtless in the guild infirmary.

Lucy had been asked by Mirajane to get a medical kit in the infirmary. Lucy agreed. When she opened the infirmary door, she saw a sight that left her breathless. Lucy raked her eyes over the muscled body, unconsciously absorbing every detail. Lucy moved her eyes towards the sturdy jawline, the thick neck dripping with pearls of sweat, the broad shoulders, and the chiseled and toned abs. She felt her mouth dry when she saw the muscles move as drops of sweat trickled down them.

"Lucy, you're staring," Laxus said to her.

Lucy had been embarrassed when she was caught staring. She immediately slammed the door and left, leaving a perplexed Laxus in the infirmary.

Coincidentally, during those times, Mirajane was always the cause for these embarrassing incidents. Lucy had half a mind to reprimand the barmaid.

Lucy sighed. She felt that ogling Laxus's body was being unfaithful with Natsu. Lucy glared at the stoned pavement. Since when did she declare herself as Natsu's wife? She didn't tell her feelings to the Fire Dragonslayer from the previous timeline anyway.

She was brought out of her musing when a voice from behind greeted her. "Hello there, Lucy. Don't you think it's late for you to be out?"

Lucy turned around to see her guild master, Makarov. "Hello, Master. I suppose it is late already."

Makarov wore a silk cape over a buttoned shirt and shorts. He wore a pair of sandals. He grinned at the blonde girl. "What have you been doing then, my dear?"

"I find walking out at night a favorite pastime of mine. It makes me think more clearly."

The master of Fairy Tail raised a brow. "Do you still feel responsible about the incident?"

Lucy shook her head. "No, Master. It's something different."

"Why don't we talk about it then?"

Lucy stared at the old man. Talking about the problem wouldn't actually affect the timeline would it? Then again, she couldn't hold the guilt harboring in her chest. She needed to release these emotions before her body would get affected.

"I'd like that," Lucy responded.

The two found a bench in a nearby park. The white moon hung above the night sky. The lamps lit the place. One of the lamps was flickering. Master Makarov cleared his throat. "So… tell me what's bothering you, my child."

Lucy stared up at the night sky, seeing the stars twinkle. She closed her eyes and constructed the sentences in her head. She let out a breath before she spoke out the words.

"Master, what would you do to gain forgiveness for unintentionally hurting a friend?"

"May I ask what did you do to hurt this friend? Did you physically harm this friend of yours?" Makarov asked.

"I didn't hurt him, but my words did," Lucy answered. "We were having an important discussion about… the future…"

Lucy cringed at her choice of words. She felt awkward now. Judging by the look on the old man beside her, she could tell that the master was thinking along the lines of 'Teenage drama and Marriage'.

"W-well," Makarov stuttered, "I think that you should talk about this with that… um… friend of yours, Lucy. You may have hurt him, especially when talking about a specific discussion such as marriage."

The word was said! Master Makarov was jumping to conclusions, and Lucy couldn't help picturing Laxus in a groom's suit. Lucy slapped her cheeks. She needed to stop having detailed fantasies.

"… and if you're still not ready to create a life. You could use protection…" the master continued.

Lucy couldn't help the lewd images popping in her head. She could vividly see Laxus's naked form on bed with a white blanket covering the lower body. Laxus would have the lustful expression on his face. His tongue would lick his lips before giving a small smirk. Seeing Laxus's muscular body did wonders to Lucy's imagination about the blonde Lightning Dragonslayer. Lucy again slapped her cheeks. She thought to herself to get her mind out of the gutter.

"… Master… I didn't mean about that, specifically." Lucy said, her face heating up from the vivid images plaguing her mind.

"… Oh… w-well child..." Master Makarov said, "… I would just probably advise you to talk this out with that friend of yours. After all, a great method of resolving a fight is to apologize. There is no other way to gain forgiveness."

Lucy nodded as she listened to Master Makarov. He was a great guild master of great wisdom.

"Sometimes, when friends fight, they would often say something out of hand. In your case, I don't think you are the type of holding a grudge, Lucy."

"Eh?"

"Despite your short stay in the guild, I have seen things about you that others are not aware of. Overseeing you children is one of my responsibilities as a guild master and a parent." He smiled. "You care deeply of your comrades. So much that you would do whatever it takes to save them, even if you hurt them. You are an intelligent girl, Lucy, but you are also very caring.

"You are also selfless. You do not want to burden everyone with your problems, so you keep them to yourself… but child… no one should ever keep the burden alone, especially if it is something so large. The guild is a place where everyone can consider as a home. Everyone in the guild is your family." Makarov looked at Lucy's face. "You'll have to open up your feelings to this friend of yours. You may have insecurities that prompted you to say the words, considering the discussion you have with your friend was about the future."

Lucy stared at the old man beside her, awe written on her face. She could never understand how deep the wisdom her master harbored. She hugged the little, old man.

"Thank you, Master," Lucy whispered.

* * *

Natsu was nervous.

He was waiting underneath a tree in the park. He could still remember the conversation he had with his blonde friend.

"Lucy…" Natsu said, "… w-would you mind… meeting me at the tree in the South Park?"

Lucy looked at him, confusion on her face. "Is it important, Natsu? I really want to continue on my novel today."

"It's really important… make sure you come alone." He grinned as he felt his cheeks flush. He then left the guild. "Well, see ya!"

Natsu didn't know how everything led to this event. If he succeeded, he would officially have a girlfriend. He didn't imagine someone like Lucy to exist. Natsu remembered the day that he realized his feelings for the blonde girl. He couldn't have realized it without some people though.

A week ago, he had been sitting in the corner of the guild. He had a downcast expression on his face.

"What's wrong with you, Flame Breath?" Gray asked.

"Nothing," Natsu replied, his voice monotonous.

"Okay. You're not insulting me back. That's not okay at all."

"Just go away, please."

"Did you just say 'please' to me?" Gray looked at the Fire Dragonslayer's blue cat, who was sitting on a table. "Happy, do you know what the hell is happening to him?"

"Natsu is probably upset because Lucy couldn't join him in a job," Happy answered, munching on a fish.

"Oh wow. Is that why you're depressed? Talk about lame," Gray said.

"Is that the reason, Natsu?" a woman's voice said.

With a large barrel of booze, Cana sat down beside the Fire Dragonslayer. "You got rejected by Lucy, huh?"

Natsu looked away.

"Cana," Gray said. "You make it sound like Natsu has the hots for Lucy. I doubt he does. This guy is probably asexual."

"Let big sis, tell you all you need to know how to get a girl's heart." Cana ignored Gray and continued speaking to Natsu.

"I'm not interested, Cana." Natsu said. "I just want to go on a job with Lucy."

"That's the thing, Natsu. You are so dense."

"What do you mean by that?"

Cana rolled her eyes. "I'm talking about how you love our resident Celestial Spirit mage."

"Of course, I love Lucy. She's my partner."

"Oh Natsu. You are so naïve. I don't mean love as in friends. I mean love as in love between a man and a woman."

"I still don't get it."

Cana sighed. She scanned the guild to look for a short, blue-haired girl. When Cana saw the blue-haired girl sitting with her two friends, Jet and Droy, Cana then waved her hand, grabbing the attention of the girl. "Levy! Come here for a second, will ya?"

"What do you need me for, Cana?" Levy asked once she reached the drunkard.

Cana pointed her thumb at Natsu. "Tell Natsu what love is, specifically the love that caused marriage."

"Eh? Well…" Levy looked at Natsu, who was looking at her with a serious expression. "I guess love is the one that you hold deep feelings with a certain person."

"Deep feelings?"

"Like… how you wanted to be close with that person… or how you wanted to be always with him or her… or how your heart will beat fast whenever he or she is around."

Natsu nodded his head. "I guess that makes sense. Those things happened to me. It only occurs with Lucy though."

"What!" Gray and Levy shouted.

"You've gotta be kidding me. You're actually interested in someone!" Gray exclaimed.

"Well, Lu-chan is very pretty. She's also strong and intelligent." Levy said.

Cana grinned. She placed her palms on her breasts and groped them. "She even has those nice rack on her chest."

Levy placed her palms on her flat chest as she muttered. "… Chest size doesn't matter…"

"I guess Lucy is somewhat like Erza, albeit a kinder version." Gray added.

"Exactly! So Natsu, don't you want to be with Lucy and marry her?" Cana questioned.

"Marry… Lucy?" Natsu said before his cheeks flushed red.

"Ohohohoho… it seems like our idiot Fire Dragonslayer realizes his feelings."

"Say Natsu, why don't you confess to Lucy?" Happy suggested. "I bet she'll say yes."

"I bet you'll get friend zoned," Gray interjected.

"W-what are you s-saying, Happy?" Natsu stuttered. "I can't just c-confess!"

"Oh, but you'll have to do it. Otherwise, some man would snatch your princess away," Cana said.

"What!"

"Obviously, Lucy is hot. There are men who are going to flirt with her, idiot."

The Fire Dragonslayer thought about Cana's words for a moment. He also thought that Lucy was a very beautiful girl, and her personality was very charming. He realized that if she had the looks and personality then many men would definitely flirt with her.

Natsu glared at the men around the guild. He looked at the four. "Fine. I'll confess to her next week."

Now, Natsu was brought out of his memories when he heard someone call his name.

He looked to the left and saw Lucy wearing a white top and a pair of black pants. She waved her hand as she ran towards him. "Natsu!"

Natsu's heart pounded on his chest. Natsu wondered if he would accidentally lit something on fire. He had done the deed before. He almost burned down a church on the job he took with Lucy yesterday because he was envisioning Lucy in a wedding dress.

"Hey Lucy!" Natsu greeted back.

Lucy stopped in front of him. "What's this important thing you wanted to tell me about?"

Natsu inhaled deeply. There was no turning back. "W-well, since you've been in the guild for the past month, I was thinking to ask you how you've been doing so far."

Lucy raised a brow at his words. "Is that so? You just had to ask now? Well, I guess… I'm having fun. Everyone is kind. The guild is a great place. I feel at home."

Natsu chuckled. "That's because it is your home, silly."

Lucy beamed at him. "You're right."

This moment was a good opportunity for Natsu. He spoke out the words, albeit clumsily. "L-Lucy… y-you really are a great person, you know."

"Eh? What's this about, Natsu?"

"Well, you're smart, strong, and pretty. I feel invincible when I'm with you. Even when everything is such a bad day, you always kept on pushing forward without looking back. You're really strong, Lucy."

Natsu stared at Lucy's eyes. Her brown eyes were so captivating. Natsu couldn't look away. He couldn't believe that such an amazing person existed. Lucy was just so perfect.

"… I-is that so?"

"Yeah! You actually remind me of my dear… friend… you see. Her name's Lisanna. She's Mirajane's and Elfman's younger sister."

"Really? Did she…" Lucy bit her lip. Natsu couldn't help but smile a little. Lucy was just so caring and understanding. She was smart to realize where the youngest Strauss sibling went.

"She did. Something went wrong in a job. Everyone was sad. Nothing has been the same… even I wasn't the same." Natsu admitted.

Other than Elfman and Mirajane, Natsu was deeply affected by the death of Lisanna. He was a close friend of the short-haired girl. She was Happy's mother and Natsu's best friend.

"She must be really special," Lucy looked down, her lips forming a small smile.

"She is, but you're also special too," Natsu said. His confidence started to rise as he continued speaking. "Before you came, everyone was grieving from her death, but since you joined, everything has been reverting back. Actually, I think everything has become even better."

Natsu saw the changes that Lucy made since she joined Fairy Tail. Everyone had been livelier and happier. Natsu didn't even see Mirajane and Elfman dozing off into space and relieving the memories. Instead, Mirajane continued on working and smiling. Elfman started to get into the guild brawls. He even started one by himself! Natsu had never seen Elfman start a guild brawl. Usually, the Beast Take Over mage would join the brawl when someone started it.

"When you came, the guild was shining brightly again," Natsu continued. "I wanted to say thank you for that. That's why Lucy I—"

Natsu couldn't continue his words because Lucy wrapped her arms around his waist. Tears slowly trickled down her cheeks. Natsu's heart was beating fast. Slowly, Natsu hugged his friend back.

He felt the warmth of her body. His nose smelled her scent of strawberries and vanilla. Lucy's scent was soothing and intoxicating. Natsu imagined the future with Lucy, his body slowly relaxing when he imagined a young girl with pink hair running around the field of flowers. Natsu and Lucy walking behind the pink-haired girl, their hands intertwined.

"Thank you, Natsu," Lucy said before she let go. "You really are a great friend."

Natsu was broken out of his reverie when he heard the dreaded word 'friend'. The possible future that he pictured in his mind gradually crumbled. The word 'friend' echoed.

Realizing that he was not responding, Natsu quickly gave his best smile to her. "Anytime, Lucy. I'll always be with you."

"I'll go back home then. See you at the guild tomorrow." Lucy strolled away. Natsu merely watched her figure until she turned to a corner and vanished from his sight.

"I got friend zoned… and I didn't even get to say 'I love you'," Natsu muttered.

Natsu slumped. He feared the teasing comments from a certain Ice mage.

* * *

Laxus was relieved.

He had wanted to talk to the blonde Celestial Spirit mage, so he went to her apartment only to find it empty. He broke in through the window and looked around to find some clue for her whereabouts until a small letter on the desk caught his attention, leading him to the Heartfilia residence.

From the distance, he saw the blonde Celestial Spirit mage kneeling in front of a grave. He walked towards her.

"So this is where you've been," Laxus said.

Lucy faced the Lightning Dragonslayer, her brown eyes widen in surprise.

"Laxus…" she said, "… what are you doing here?"

"I wanted to talk. I heard a rumor of Natsu confessing to you."

Laxus was worried. He didn't know what he would do if the blonde girl actually accepted the Fire Dragonslayer's confession. Laxus would have a hard time keeping his promise if he couldn't have the time to spend with the blonde girl.

"… Well… I guess you could say that," Lucy said. "I did reject him indirectly. Although, I acted as if I didn't know he was confessing to me."

"I thought you wanted to be with him. Wouldn't you normally use this chance?"

Laxus was confused. Although he was at ease, he couldn't stop his curiosity. Laxus knew she loved Natsu. Why did Lucy not seize the opportunity to be with the Fire Dragonslayer? Why was love always complicated?

"He's not the Natsu I fell in love with. He sees me as the strong girl that could stand against anything. He sees me as the girl who gives others hope. I'm not that kind of girl, Laxus." Lucy offered Laxus a smile. "Besides, I'm moving on from him. I think it's for the best."

Seeing Lucy smiling brightly brought Laxus a mixture of emotions—happiness, pride, and guilt. He was happy and proud for Lucy because she slowly moving forward. Laxus didn't know how she did it, but she was great at hiding her emotions. In fact, he couldn't even understand how she could cope talking with the others in the guild. For Laxus, he had to take on multiple jobs to get further away from the guild. Seeing the faces of his guild mates laughing and smiling brought images of corpses. Then, Laxus felt guilty. He felt guilty for pursuing his selfish desire to change the events when Lucy didn't pursue her own. In fact, she gave up on her deep love. A love so strong that transcended time itself. Lucy loved the Natsu from the previous timeline. She loved him because they both share experiences and feelings together. Even when she was given the chance to return back to the past, she didn't pursue the affection of the Fire Dragonslayer. She probably knew that the man she loved and the man she spend her time with now were two different people.

Despite the complexity of love, Laxus saw how beautiful love is. The girl kneeling in front of him was proof.

"I'm sorry," Laxus said.

"What for?" Lucy asked.

Laxus wanted to say 'For your unrequited feelings.'

However, he couldn't say those words. He had no right.

"For being selfish," Laxus continued. "I wanted to right the wrongs I ever done while in the past. I didn't want everyone to experience the Fantasia incident ever again… but you still wanted it to happen. Because if it never happened, everyone would never live on to see tomorrow. You gave up on your selfish wish to pursue Natsu. I should have done the same thing. I'm ashamed of myself."

"Laxus…"

"That's why, Lucy. I will—"

Lucy shook her head. "I should be the one to apologize, Laxus. I think you shouldn't do the incident as well."

"Lucy, if this is supposed to make me feel—"

"Let me finish… please." Lucy looked at the ground.

Laxus stopped speaking. His silence was a cue for the blonde girl to speak.

Lucy stood up. She looked at Laxus directly. She opened her mouth.

"I was actually afraid, Laxus. I'm afraid of change. I'm afraid that if we changed the timeline too much, everything will change. You and I will also change. I'm afraid that if these changes were to happen… I would start to think that our time with our friends from the previous timeline was worth nothing. I'm afraid of that Laxus.

"Natsu's attempt of confessing to me made me realize that. Our friends in this timeline may even grow up different from the friends we bonded from the previous timeline. Natsu was a prime example."

Despite her voice being soft and brimming with confidence, Laxus could still hear the trembling of her voice.

"That's why Laxus… I'm glad you are here. I don't want you to go anywhere else. Please… don't do what I tell you to do anymore. I don't want to handle this burden alone. I want you to stay by my side, reminding me who I had been, how I became as the person I am now, and the friends we had in the previous timeline."

"Lucy…"

"Promise me… promise me that you will stand beside me…."

Laxus saw the tears streaming down Lucy's cheeks. The wind weakly brushing against her hair. Lucy rubbed her hands against her eyes, desperately trying to stop the tears falling.

"I will…" Laxus said before giving her a small smile, "… I promise to never leave your side, so stop those tears. I told you before, didn't I? To save those tears for when we save our friends. With you crying to much, I doubt you would have tears left when all of these is over."

Lucy giggled.

Laxus promised to be with her, and he would keep that promise. Maybe, he could actually still keep his promise with Natsu.

* * *

 **A/N: Hello readers. This is the longest chapter, which was around 4000 words, I have ever written. I hope you enjoyed it. I wanted to post this chapter tomorrow, but I would be busy that day. Once again, I apologize if the whole chapter is filled with dialogues and probably errors. I would love to know your opinions if I had balanced the chapter well enough with the narration and dialogue. My next work featuring Cobra and Lucy is called 'A Soul Sings a Soothing Song'. I am still not sure when I will publish the work. The title is not yet permanent, but what do you think will the idea be about based on the title? I love to have a guessing game with you guys. Be sure to fave, follow, and review this chapter.**


	14. Chapter 14: A Lion in Pain

In her small, cozy apartment, Lucy had been walking back and forth.

"What do I do?" she muttered.

She just got back from a job with her team. She didn't realize the next crucial event was coming, for she had been busy enough with her emotions and rebuilding of the guild.

When she had seen Loke eating in a sushi bar, Lucy remembered the next event: Loke's fate between existing and not existing. Obviously, Lucy needed Loke to exist, but how would she do it? In the previous timeline, she managed to grab the Celestial Spirit King's attention due to her emotions. Of course, Lucy still wanted her friend to exist, but the knowledge Loke's future could possibly influence her emotions. She didn't know if the result would still be the same.

Lucy stopped pacing around her room and opted to sit on her sofa, heaving a sigh whilst rubbing her temples.

"What are you sighing for?" a voice asked.

Alarmed, Lucy abruptly stood up and scanned her surroundings. She saw Laxus standing beside her bed.

"Laxus," Lucy said, "how did you get in?"

"Through the window," he responded.

"Is going through windows a Dragonslayer trend?" Lucy muttered, remembering how Natsu constantly entering her apartment through the window.

"Not really."

"So… what are you doing here?" Lucy asked.

"Making sure you're alright," Laxus answered. "I notice you've been frantic since you came back from a job."

If she were the Lucy a few days ago, she would have said, "I'm alright. Thanks for the concern, Laxus."

However, she wasn't the girl who keep her burdens alone anymore. She had Laxus with her now. She could open up with him.

"I'm actually not alright," Lucy said.

Immediately, Laxus grabbed her shoulders and looked around her body for visual injuries, his eyes narrowed in concern. "What do you mean, Lucy? What happened? Were you hurt?"

Lucy was quite surprised. She didn't expect a quick reaction, especially worry, from Laxus. In fact, he mostly used two expressions: arrogance and indifference.

"Hold it! Laxus, I'm fine. You can stop checking me for injuries." Lucy slowly and gently pushed the taller blonde back.

Laxus raised his brow. "Then what do you mean? You said you're not fine."

"I didn't mention either about my mental and physical health, Laxus. I meant about the next problem I'm facing." Lucy gestured at her sofa. "Sit down. I want to discuss this with you."

Laxus complied. When he sat down, Lucy sat down beside him.

"You know the events, right? After the Phantom Lord Incident, next will be…" Lucy said.

"… The Tower of Heaven, right? I know. I heard that Jellal was the mastermind behind the incident," Laxus continued.

"That's right. My team was taking a short vacation in Akane Resort."

"So? What's the problem then?" Laxus asked. "You could just get the tickets and do whatever you did in the previous timeline."

"That's the problem." Lucy nodded

"Getting the tickets?"

"Exactly."

"Money problems? I always hear you complaining about your team being too destructive."

"That's not really the problem…" Lucy answered, "… I got the tickets from Loke… after I saved him from disappearing."

"Then just go save him," Laxus answered instantly. "It couldn't be that hard, right? You managed to save him, and since you know what's going to happen, just do the same thing."

"I can't reenact the situation, Laxus." Lucy answered. "I think I was lucky that time."

"Okay. This situation is really bad if you can't even come up with a solution."

"It is." Lucy agreed. "I managed to save Loke in the previous timeline because the Celestial Spirit King showed himself. I don't even know why the king himself appeared in front of me and Loke. I was too caught up in my emotions."

Lucy was seriously in a dire predicament. No matter how much she used her brain, she couldn't find a way to make the Celestial Spirit King show himself. She could probably look for ancient books to summon the Celestial Spirit King, but she was running out of time.

Lucy stared at Laxus, waiting for his response. She wanted to know what he would say. Lucy realized that his mouth would spout out words of wisdom just like Master Makarov's. Apparently, Laxus didn't just inherit power and heart from his grandfather. Laxus also inherited his grandfather's wisdom.

"You know," Laxus said, "instead of thinking, why don't you just act it out?"

Lucy raised a brow at him.

"I mean…" Laxus continued, "… you're thinking about this too much. You feel this strongly for your friend. Those feelings will surely reach the Celestial Spirit King."

Lucy glared at Laxus. She expected wisdom to come out of his mouth, not stupidity.

"Laxus," she yapped, "I can't just act through my feelings. I have to think this through. I only have one chance to save Loke."

"I think you're being Lucy the Fairy Tactician, not Lucy of Fairy Tail. Right now, Loke doesn't need the help of the Fairy Tactician. He needs help from Lucy… just Lucy."

"I'm telling you, Laxus. I don't need emotions right now. I need a solution!"

"Sometimes, thinking doesn't solve a problem."

"And you think using instinct could solve one? I think it's reckless… and stupid."

Laxus chuckled. Lucy didn't know what was hilarious in her situation. It was supposed to be dire. Laxus should be panicking with her.

Laxus stood up and patted Lucy's head. "You think too much. If you were able to save Loke last time, what's stopping you this time?"

"Why are you so confident that I'll be able to save Loke? There are endless possibilities!" Lucy slapped away the hand patting her head.

She looked away from Laxus and stared at the pink walls of her apartment. She didn't want to see his face, for she might kick him through the window.

"I trust you because you're the only person I have in this world." Laxus strode to the window. "I should get going. I still have a couple of Dark Guilds to hunt. See you, Lucy."

Lucy shifted her gaze to watch Laxus jump out of her window. She thought about his words.

Warmth filled her chest. Lucy didn't know the reason, but after hearing Laxus words, she didn't want to let down Laxus's expectations for her.

"Geez." Lucy smiled. "How could you say those stuff without getting embarrassed?"

Lucy smiled. She stood up and grabbed her keys on her desk, walking to her apartment door. She would trust Laxus's advice.

* * *

Lucy saw Loke in a cliff. He was kneeling in front of a grave. Lucy still remembered this scenery vividly. The wide waterfall sparkled as its water descended and hit the bottom. The night sky was adorned with different brilliant colors of light from stars far away. She took silent, steady steps towards him.

"Loke," Lucy called out.

Loke turned his head around. "Lucy…"

"Hey there."

"What are you doing here?" he gave her a dazzling smile.

Lucy closed her eyes. She organized her thoughts, constructing sentences in her head. She had a million of responses to say. She opened her mouth but stopped when Laxus's advice rang through her head: "I think you're being Lucy the Fairy Tactician, not Lucy of Fairy Tail. Right now, Loke doesn't need the help of the Fairy Tactician. He needs help from Lucy… just Lucy."

Opening her eyes, Lucy observed Loke. He was still giving a charming smile. To any other person, he would seem happy, but Lucy thought otherwise. She knew how deep the pain that Loke harbored. Loke didn't need logical answers. He needed someone to assure him.

"I know," Lucy said. "I know who you are, Loke."

His eyes widening, Loke looked at her.

"Loke… no… Leo of the Zodiac, one of Karen Lilica's spirits. You were banished by the Celestial Spirit King for committing a grave sin…" Lucy continued.

Loke chuckled. "I see. I didn't expect you to realize it. Then again, you're a smart girl."

"I knew the moment I met you, Loke."

Lucy wasn't lying. In this timeline, she already knew because of her memories from the previous timeline.

"You're a great Celestial Spirit Wizard. You take care of your spirits so well. If Karen was like you, then I wouldn't have killed her," Loke said.

"It's not your fault." Lucy responded.

"It doesn't matter if it is my fault or not. I killed her. That's that."

"You didn't kill her, Loke. You were protecting your friend, Aries. You were doing what you think was right."

Loke quietened. He gazed down on the earth, staring at it. Lucy wondered if he was sifting through memories with his previous owner.

A minute of silence passed before Loke continued speaking. "You know what will happen now right? I'll fade away from existence."

"That won't happen, Loke," Lucy said, "I'll stop that."

"You can't stop it, Lucy. I managed to survive for these three years. I don't think I can manage one more day in this realm."

Lucy ran up to Loke and grabbed his shoulders. "I'll save you. I'll do whatever I can to save you! Don't give up!"

Laxus told her to act based on her feelings. She didn't trust herself, but she trusted Laxus.

Pouring out magical power, Lucy grabbed hold of Loke's shoulder. She would make sure to save Loke. She promised her spirits to get them back. She would make sure to keep her promises.

"Open! Door of the Lion!" Lucy screamed.

The two were encased with a dazzling shade of golden light. The light was bright like a star. The air around the light whirled around it, circling around the two people.

"Stop it, Lucy! If you continue, you'll fade with me as well! Please, don't do this…" Loke tried to escape her grasp. He pushed her shoulders, hoping that his remaining strength would be enough to shove her.

Lucy ignored his plea and held onto him. She didn't stop pouring out magic power. She would have to be a reckless idiot this time. If she died, she would definitely haunt Laxus.

"Open! Door of the Lion!" she screamed once more.

Lucy didn't know what will happen. She was just doing the same thing as the previous timeline, hoping that her power would be enough to at least open a door to the Celestial Spirit World.

Lucy opened her eyes, and she saw a majestic gate gradually fabricating in front of her.

"The gate!"

She couldn't believe that she managed to open a gate of an uncontracted spirit. Was she slowly gaining her strength from the future?

Loke looked behind him to see the door slowly constructing. "No… way."

Lucy wondered if the seals in her body were slowly disintegrating from the constant expulsion of magic power. She needed her strength to save her friend. Testing her theory, she poured out more magic power.

Lucy felt one of her seals in her body crack and disintegrate. A large amount of magic power surged into her body before it was expelled.

"Loke! Hang on, the gate is almost done…" Lucy groaned.

"Lucy, stop! You'll strain your body! Don't add more sins to my life!"

"Your kindness isn't a sin!"

Suddenly, everything around the area stopped. The atmosphere changed. Both wind and water stopped. Time and space froze.

A large figure loomed above the two.

"You've got to be kidding me… why are you here?" Loke asked.

The large human-shaped figure was colossal. He floated above the two Fairy Tail mages. Donning his full set of plate armor, the Celestial Spirit King had his arms crossed. His oversized, white mustache was a striking feature that possibly brought many either to awe or fear the spirit.

"Old friend, we who pledge oaths to humans… we who bear keys, we are forbidden from killing," the Celestial Spirit King said. "Though not directly, you did cause this indirectly, Leo. It is forbidden for you to return to the Spirit World."

The Celestial Spirit King made an appearance.

* * *

 **A/N: Hello readers. I apologize for not posting a chapter last Saturday. I have no excuses for the lack of update. In fact, I was coming up an idea for this chapter. Sadly, the chapter isn't as noteworthy as it seems. This chapter is mostly filled with dialogue, and there wasn't much proofreading. As I have stated in my previous chapters, I would not proofread this work until I either have a lot of free time in my hands or not. In addition, I have written a warning in the first chapter for the following scenarios:** ** **slow updates, rewriting, hiatus, or discontinuation.** If one of those scenarios happen, I hope that you would neither nag nor threaten me. Unfortunately, one of those scenarios will happen. Starting next month, there would be a hiatus until the beginning of August. I will confirm that I will still continue this work, so don't start crying. I will be going on vacation in my home country. My place over there has no internet, so I would most likely spend my time reading books, writing stories, or becoming one with nature. If I have not updated the following week, I must have been busy for applying for universities. Be sure to fave, follow, and review this chapter.  
**


	15. Chapter 15: Audience with the King

Chapter 15: Audience with the Spirit King

Loke imagined his death to be tragic.

He had clearly imagined disappearing from existence in Karen's grave without anyone interfering.

"I'm telling you that Loke's crime is a very special case," Lucy said, "so it can't be considered as-"

"Little girl! Are you deaf?" the Spirit King interrupted. "I told you that Leo cannot be brought back to the Spirit Realm. I agree that his crime cannot be considered-"

"See! So you agree that his crime isn't going to-"

In the beginning of the argument between Lucy and the Spirit King, Loke was shifting between dread and hope. Who wouldn't feel such emotions when it involves a person's life, especially when it concerns his? Loke was nervously waiting for the final judgement to pass onto him. Would he continue to exist or not?

Now, Loke stared at the scene playing in front of him, boredom written on his face. He couldn't fathom how a human girl and an immortal, gigantic, and almighty being immersed in a debate about his life for more than seven hours. In fact, morning should have come if space and time was still functioning.

"Although, I don't think Loke had a crime to commit," Lucy said.

"What are you talking about little girl?" the Spirit King asked. "Leo clearly broke a ru-"

"Ah, ah, ah..." Lucy wagged her fingers. "You stated a few minutes ago that Loke's crime is special because it does not clearly categorize in any of your rules! Clearly, Loke didn't create such 'crime'."

"In that case, I could just make a new rule!"

"Hey! That's an abuse of power! You can't do that!"

"Of course I can! I'm a king!"

To exist or not to exist, Loke just wanted the conclusion to be over. Watching a colossal, almighty being arguing with a puny mortal for hours was slowly driving him to insanity. Loke was feeling dread and hope, switching between the two feelings, for hours! Oh, Loke noticed that the argument shifted from "How to become a great ruler?" to "Which dish is best served with coffee?"

"Damn it! Just give me an answer to my life already..." Loke muttered, "... I can't deal with feeling this way..."

He sighed. Maybe, he should try to end his life right now. Suicide was slowly becoming a tempting option. No one could stop Loke, not even the two arguing in front of him. In fact, why was he even letting these two people in front of him decide what to do with his life. It was his damn life! He could do with his life whatever he wanted!

* * *

Laxus was bored.

A few hours ago, he followed his blonde partner to a cliff where a lone grave of Karen Lilica situated. He watched the drama unfold in front of him, and he was proud of the Celestial Spirit mage fabricating the door to the Celestial Spirit world. Pride for the blonde girl swelled in his chest when Laxus saw the appearance of the Spirit King. Laxus watched his partner shout out her demands for Loke to return to the Spirit realm to the Spirit King. Laxus continued observing the argument. When he realized that it wouldn't end soon, he comfortably sat and leaned his back against a tree trunk. He decided to take a nap.

When Laxus woke up, he was greeted with a strange scene. The Spirit King and Lucy were having childish arguments about leadership and coffee, and Loke with a contemplative look on his face was sitting farther away from the two. Laxus saw the depressed aura emitting from the orange-haired spirit. Now, Laxus had two questions. How long did he sleep, and why was Loke depressed?

Laxus didn't have to wait too long for his answers.

Loke was screaming and shouting at the two people arguing with each other. He was literally scolding the two arguing people for quarreling about the fate of his existence for seven hours. Laxus placed a palm on his face. He couldn't believe that his blonde partner engaged in a childish debate with the Spirit King. She was the Fairy Tactician. She was regal, level-headed, and mature. How did she even immerse herself in something so childish? Heck, how could two people argue for so long?

Laxus sighed before walking away. He had better things to do than watch a Lion spirit scold the blonde Celestial Mage and a King of Celestial Spirits.

* * *

 **A/N: Hello readers. I hope this short chapter would satisfy you for now. I'm back where there is Internet. I typed this on my newly bought IPad. This is probably just a first time experience. Usually, I would type my stories on my laptop, but like any normal being, I have also been infected with laziness. I apologize for the short chapter, and I also apologize with the future late updates.** **My university will start in a few more days, and I am becoming nervous with each passing day.** **I had told you readers in my previous chapter that I will be in a place where there is no internet yet I will continue to write chapters to post. Unfortunately, my family tends to drag me out of bed everyday to the malls and to my relatives' place, so I didn't have the time to write. Fortunately, I had gotten ideas from being away from writing. Still, I thank everyone of you readers for your endless patience and tolerance. Be sure to fave, follow, and review this chapter.**


	16. Chapter 16: Evergreen's Realization

Lucy was packing her clothes and essentials. She had an hour left before meeting with her team in the train station. Her hands continued to work as her mind drifted off.

In the previous timeline, Lucy had convinced the Celestial Spirit King through summoning all of her contracted celestial spirits. This timeline, however, she was totally indulged in the argument that lasted more than seven hours. Fortunately, Loke was still able to return his rightful place as a zodiac spirit, but that conclusion only happened because Loke's tolerance and patience had snapped, scaring both the Celestial Spirit Mage and Celestial Spirit King. Lucy had no idea that her friend could be so frightening. She had always wondered how Loke could be so calm and laid back with her guild's antics. She was curious about his anger sometimes. Now, she knew not to annoy him too much. She never knew how a person could use so many offensive words in a single sentence.

Lucy slightly frowned, briefly stopping in her work. She was a little frustrated for her inability to summon all her contracted spirits. She had come to one conclusion for the difference in the event. Through growing up into a very respectable and mature individual, she wasn't as indulged in her emotions as before. She could still be emotional sometimes, but unlike last time, she had grown up and learned a lot. Her experiences had brought her many lessons, especially during a war. This level-headedness had severe any chances of summoning all of her contracted spirits. Lucy knew that her piqued in emotive cognition last time had escalated her magic power briefly, but since her subconscious knew what to expect, she couldn't do a miraculous grand summoning. Besides, she was throwing a tantrum during that time.

Lucy had came up with different questions with answers. Would this affect the future? Most likely. Would this stray away from the intended future? Not likely. Lucy had so many questions that increased her worries. She shook her head, trying to rid negativity. She would not let her depressing thoughts overwhelm her. She was strong and smart, and she wasn't alone in this problem. She glanced at the tall blonde man sitting on her couch.

"Laxus. Can you please stop doing that?" Lucy said.

"Doing what?" Laxus replied.

"Staring."

After a rather anticlimactic event, Loke had given four tickets for a one night stay at a wonderful resort in the morning to Lucy and her team. The blonde Celestial Spirit Mage didn't even bother listening to the following conversation because someone had been distracting her ever since she woke up. The blonde lightning Dragonslayer had been giving her strange and weird looks.

Normally, Lucy would ignore them, but Laxus was giving them! He was her partner in the plan to eliminate Zeref. Lucy couldn't possibly just ignore those looks! They weren't filled with malice nor lust. If it were the latter, she could tell because she had her fair share of perverted looks coming at her as a woman herself. Although, Lucy felt that she lost a bit of respect from the Lightning Dragonslayer. Her woman's intuition told her this much.

Lucy turned to face the taller male blonde. "Laxus, is something the matter?"

"Not really?" he replied.

"Is that a question or an answer?"

He was silent, and he continued his staring.

Frowning, Lucy put her hands in her hips before leaning forward. "Laxus! I demand you say what you're thinking right now."

Laxus chuckled and muttered a few words. Despite not hearing the rest of them, Lucy did, however, heard the word 'childish'. She then knew what Laxus was thinking.

She glared at him. "And why do you think I'm childish?"

He shook his head. "You're done packing?"

"I am, and don't try to change the subject. I'm curious."

He stood up, walked to her, and patted her head. "I say what I truly see. Anyway, be safe."

Before Lucy could reply, Laxus turned and jumped out of her window. She sighed before muttering.

"Did he have to pat my head? I'm a grown woman, not a child."

Lucy didn't want to admit that she liked Laxus's pats.

* * *

"Are you sure about this, Freed?" Evergreen said.

She wore a green dress with a wing-like white cape in the back. She crossed her legs covered in blue stockings. She used her fan to cool herself, the slight breeze pushing her bangs slightly away from her face. Sitting across her was a man with long green hair. He was dressed like those aristocrats-a red long coat, a white cravat tie on his neck, and a pair of pants tucked inside his boots. A rapier was strapped on his hip. A few feet away from them, a masked man leaned against the wall, wooden totems floating around him. He was dressed in a hybrid form of a knight and a jester. The metallic visor covering his eyes looked like a knight's helm. His upper body, barring his hands and face, was covered by a white vertical-striped cloth, and a pair of loose pair of pants and armored greaves for his lower body.

"I am sure," the green-haired man, Freed, said. "I don't understand Laxus's actions. In fact, I have a feeling that he's different from his usual self. He normally mocks the other weaklings, but..."

"I agree with Freed, Ever." The jester-looking man, Bickslow, nodded. "Laxus is being strange. He has been helping the guild. I even saw him joining a few members from missions other than us!"

She understood her other two companions' worries. Laxus was acting strange. He wasn't cocky as much. She saw him subtly help the other guild members, albeit he failed at hiding it, and he was showing acts of kindness. In fact, he seemed to become a different person. He seemed mature, wise, and... caring. If he was interacting with the others so well, Evergreen decided to join him. She tried to interact with the others. Although there were hints of fear and reluctance in the beginning, she was satisfied by the end. She even experienced "girl talk" with the other girls. She felt so accepted that she even wondered why she never tried opening her circle.

"Well, what if Laxus changed?" Evergreen suggested. She was not going to ruin everyone's trust in her. She wanted to have those girl talks again. "Everyone is bound to change. Laxus is no exception to that."

"Ever, could a person drastically change in a short amount of time?" Freed asked.

"... You have a point."

"You're even starting to change as well..."

"W-what?"

Freed narrowed his eyes at the brunette. "You've been getting quite close with the other members of the guild."

"W-well, Laxus seems to want to get along with the others, so I just joined..." she quickly moved her fan as she switched the topic. "Besides, maybe something happened to make Laxus change."

"Like what?"

Evergreen wanted to groan. Well, she expected as much. Freed would be difficult difficult to convince. Bickslow wouldn't be too difficult. He would join in the bandwagon soon enough if she manages to convince Freed on her side. Now, Evergreen should come up some believable suggestion for Laxus's change. Then again, she found the perfect reason all thanks from a certain barmaid.

"He... may have fallen in love? You know how he interacts a lot with that new member," Evergreen answered.

"Ever, he would either look at a woman with disinterest or lust, the former usually, and nothing else. I know Laxus. He would never love a woman."

"Well, that's where you're wrong Freed. Laxus has been getting very chummy with this new member."

"Oh, you mean that blondie?" Bickslow asked.

Evergreen turned to him. "That's right. She's smart, strong at least the others said, and also beautiful although I'm slightly better."

"Laxus always hang out with her." Bickslow added. "I think there were times I've seen them alone together."

Evergreen was overjoyed at the fact that Bickslow was inadvertently helping her. She would have to concoct some false stories.

"I've actually seen him go to her apartment," Evergreen lied. "He was carrying bags."

"W-what?" Freed had his eyes widened.

Bickslow whistled. "Damn, Laxus is actually into her."

"That's right! I've seen them go to a cafe during my outing to the saloon," Evergreen continued in her concocted tale of Laxus's love life.

"H-how could I have missed that!" Freed shouted.

"Well, only girls has a sense for this kind of thing. Now that you know that by now. We'll stop continuing with the plan, right?"

"Of course."

Evergreen felt grinning until Freed's added words.

"We'll have to strategize everything again without Laxus's prior knowledge."

What did he just say? Evergreen thought she didn't hear him right.

"Clearly, the new member... no... that vile vixen used some kind of charm magic. Laxus has a strong mind, but since the change happened a few weeks ago, I doubt he'll be able to free himself."

"Wait a minute. How did you get to that conclusion?" Evergreen shouted.

Freed had a smug face. "From you. I only needed your information to solve the piece of the puzzle from this morning."

Evergreen couldn't keep up. Her brain was too much in shock at Freed's twisted idea.

"I was so puzzled by this morning. Laxus was glaring at that blonde witch and muttering something!"

"Really?" Bickslow had a confused look on his face. He turned to the self-proclaimed fairy. "Was he actually glaring at the blonde chick?"

 _No he wasn't! He was observing the blonde girl as to why, don't ask!_ Evergreen wanted to say, but Freed continued.

"Although he was muttering, I know he was cursing that woman's existence."

Was Freed stating facts or baseless assumptions? Evergreen didn't know. She felt a migraine growing in her head.

"As the Thunder God Tribe, we'll save our Laxus! Being Fairy Tail's guild master is his dream, and he will do everything he can to do so. I will always support him."

At this point, Evergreen was tempted to shove her fan in Freed's ass. She realized one thing about Freed: he was delusional.

* * *

 **A/N: Hello readers. I deeply apologize for the slow update. I had been busy with university studies, so I didn't have the time to write much. Although, I'm quite surprise and delighted at how no people reviewed for updates, updates, and more updates. At the very least, I'm thankful for you guys not nagging the writer for updates especially when he is currently busy. I would also like to point out that I will not be writing the Tower of Heaven arc. One reason would be Lucy having little focus in that arc except for fighting a controlled Juvia. Second reason was that I like to write things from other people's point of view such as Evergreen because the anime is focused in the beginning with the four characters-Natsu, Lucy, Erza, and Gray. The third reason would be my liking to skip over to the Fantasia arc. I'd also like to thank all of you for your wonderful reviews and devotion to continue reading this work. I know many of you had read many works related to time travel, and I am quite glad that you liked mine enough to be in two communities, which I didn't realize until today. I'd like to thank some people:  
**

 **xzEr00nly1x: Thank you for the wonderful idea you have shared to me via private message. I had considered about it, and it inspired me to create whole new idea for the Fantasia arc.**

 **kurahieiritr JIO: Thank you for the long and considerate reviews you have written about this story. I was really delighted to see that you took your time writing responses to every chapter I have posted. I'd hope that my writing would still meet the expectations like those previous chapters.  
**

 **There are a couple more reviewers that I noticed such as Grimnack and that Toolazytologin person. Thank you all for the support.  
**

 **Be sure to follow, fave, and review this chapter.**


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